INFINITUDE

First published in 2014 by Hachette India

(Registered name: Hachette Book Publishing India Pvt Ltd)
An Hachette UK company
www.hachetteindia.com
1
Copyright 2014 Ruchi Banerjee

Ruchi Banerjee asserts the moral right to be identifed as the author of this work
All rights reserved. No part of the publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system
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published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
This is a work of fction. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead,
is purely coincidental.
ISBN 978-93-5009-815-8
Hachette Book Publishing India Pvt. Ltd
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Printed and bound in India
by
INFINITUDE
by
Ruchi Banerjee
Ruchi Banerjee was born in 1978 and still continues to
thrive. Ever since she rst met Francine (the protagonist
of her favourite novel,A Tree Grows in Brooklyn), Ruchi
fell in love with the written word. At present, Ruchi lives
in Brazil, speaks decent, if not quite uent, Portuguese
and really hates talking about herself in third person.
This is her rst novel.
To Usha and Yog Raj Sharma for giving me the
freedom to dream.
To Abhishek who always believes and who helped
me put in a lot of the unbelievable stuff.
To Neil for being the best ve-year-old in the
whole ooniverse.
I
TI GER, TI GER
The Amazonia, 26 December 2173
Mira struggles to catch up. A minute ago, she had
been right behind Neel chasing that dreadful sound,
an eerie rustling that had lled her with darkness and
foreboding. Now all she can see are the distant ashes
of his shirt. Mira runs harder gulping the air in. The
dank smell of wet rot weighs down on her lungs. Her
clothes stick to her body drenched with the sweat of
her exertions and her fear. Mira strives to draw strength
from the towering trees surrounding her, but they seem
to be struggling as well. They careen upwards like
dementors, ghting to escape to the freedom of the
skies above. Their dense canopy leaves nothing behind
but a morass simmering with the static of all kinds of
strange prehistoric insects.
Images of wiry antennas, feathery bodies and
diaphanous wings ll Miras mind and she ghts back
a shiver. Her step falters as a stray beam of sunlight
dazes her eyes. The halo stretches and then disappears.
It just takes a second but as she focuses her eyes again,
Mira draws in a sharp breath. Cold stark fear surges
through her veins. The thumping of her chest resounds
in her ears. Its gone. The blur of white she had been
following is gone.
Mira draws on the last reserves of strength she
2 INFINITUDE
has left. Streaks of green and brown ll the corner
of her eyes and her heart feels like an over-inated
balloon, just about to burst. She should have listened
to Neel. She should have gone back home. Too late.
Too late. Minutes pass and just when shes about to
give up hope, she sees a ash of Neels shirt again. Her
shoulders collapse with relief and she sucks in a long
shuddering breath. And then . . . one small misstep . . .
Mira stumbles and twists her foot over a surface root. A
sharp snap rings in her ears and a piercing pain sears
through her ankle. Suddenly her whole body buckles
and is . . . air-borne!
Mira shrieks, as much in shock as in pain. Her legs
get bent upwards at an awkward angle, while her torso
faces the ground below, pressed against something
hard. Something that bites viciously into her skin.
As her whole body starts swaying, Mira looks down
and realizes shes about twenty feet above the ground!
Panic strikes and she starts screaming, calling out to Neel.
A few seconds later, the terror of the moment passes
and she quietens down.
No need to panic. Surely, Neel must have heard her.
He must be on his way back right now.
She moves her ngers around to inspect but all she
can make out is more of the same hard metallic rope
that her face seems to be plastered on. As she feels the
rope with her ngers, she begins to follow the crisscross
patterns in it. Of course! Its a net . . . a trap!
She curses at the sheer possibility of something
like this happening to her and that too on a day when
things had already been bad enough. Mira curses her
wretched fate but doesnt indulge in the self-pity for too
long. Never one to just sit and fret, she resorts to action.
TIGER, TIGER 3
Lifting her hands, she clenches the net above her
head and concentrates all her energy on hoisting herself
up. But as soon as she tries to straighten her legs, a sharp
stinging pain shoots up her right ankle, throbbing all
the way to her brain. A cry escapes her lips and she
collapses back, singed with the wasted effort.
Weighed down with her bulk, the net sways making
her dizzy, Mira closes her eyes and shouts out Neels
name again.
Whats taking him so long? Maybe Neel covered a
lot of distance when she fell? Maybe he needs just a
bit more time. Then it occurs to her. All this while, she
has just been shouting Neels name! He must have
thought she was trying to stop him. He may not even
realize that she needs help! Stupid stupid.
She starts shouting his name again, this time adding
her pleas for help. Then she waits. A minute passes.
Then another.
What if he hasnt heard her? What if something has
happened to him as well?
For the rst time ever, Mira feels the terror. Naked
and unadulterated terror. Stuck in this trap with a
broken leg and with no one coming to rescue her! This
cant be happening!
Miras eyes glaze over with tears but she cant wipe
them. If she moves her hands, the whole thing will start
swaying again and she doesnt want to risk moving her
leg, even by an inch. Judging by the amount of pain,
her ankle is probably fractured. She blinks furiously to
clear her eyes and tells herself to get it together. She
can do this. She feels a tingle in her back and realizes
that she has to do this. She cant stay in this position
much longer. Her spine is bent at an unnatural angle
4 INFINITUDE
and sooner or later, she will have to move. Maybe, if
she could somehow manage to sit, she would be able to
think more clearly. She lies there for a second, dredging
up her reserves, willing herself to move.
Nothing in her life has prepared her for this, but
then nothing could have. She remembers a saying her
mom often used to quote during one of their heart-to-
heart talks.
Life never prepares you for a mishap. It just shapes
you for dealing with the aftermath.
She never really understood its meaning. Until now.
Ow. Her back wrenches. Already she can feel the
beginnings of a muscle cramp. She has to move. Now.
Mira grits her teeth, clenches the net and raises
herself. The pain is unbearable, like shards of glass
coursing through her veins. Her body convulses, but
she somehow wills herself to keep going. Twisting her
torso, she brings herself into an upright sitting position.
The net doesnt allow her to stretch her legs, so she sits
bundled up, drawing her knees to her chest. Then as
the net slowly stills itself, she passes out.
The first stab of consciousness brings with it a
scalding soreness in her leg that slowly starts spreading
all over her body.
Its denitely a fracture. It has to be. What else could
cause such agonizing awful pain?
Mira sucks in a deep breath to brace herself before
looking down at her ankle.
A glimpse of white tendons peeking out from behind
crusted blood and she snaps her head up, trying to
blank out the image that has just been seared on her
mind. She brings her hands up to cover her eyes.
And thats when she notices the morphe on her wrist.
TIGER, TIGER 5
Crystal veins thread across its surface like a tortured
anatomical drawing.
Mira looks up at the canopy shrouding her. It is
still as bright as it had been earlier, but now, with her
morphe smashed, she has no way of knowing how long
she has been unconscious. She checks her pockets in
slow, clumsy movements, trying to take stock of her
belongings.
She comes up with a bottle of water, a nutri strip
and a repellent spray. The wedge between her chest
and folded legs lls up with the meagre possessions.
Giving them a dejected look, she stuffs everything
back into her pockets. Everything, apart from the bottle.
After she was done putting back the spray and the
nutri strip, she brings the bottle to her lips and sucks
in a big gulp.
The rush of the water feels divine against her
parched throat but she knows she has to be careful
with it. She has to pace out all her rations however
measly they might be because who knew when Neel
might nd her? Though nd her, he will. He will have
to realize she is missing, sooner or later.
Next she digs out the nutri strip and peels it open.
Taking a bite, she sucks on it slowly, drawing it out,
making it last. And thats when she hears it.
A sound that tenses her body with foreboding. It is
the same rustling sound which had led her to this trap.
Forgetting her resolve, she swallows the gloop in
her mouth and looks around. Nothing moves, but then
something rustles again. This time much closer.
She holds her breath and looks above. No one. An
almost indecipherable soft thud comes from her right.
Filled with dread, she turns her head and nds herself
6 INFINITUDE
looking into a pair of impossibly wide, inhuman eyes.
Orange ames speckled with gold dust, the feral irises
gaze back at her and like pinpricks, they freeze each
and every cell in her body. She wants to look away just
so she can breathe, but she nds it impossible to tear
herself away from those eyes. The eyes which bear the
wild untamed gaze of a predator.
The faint rosette markings on its black hide shimmer
as it crouches on a branch just a few feet away from
her, standing absolutely still, as if carved out of a huge
piece of obsidian. In a virtual world, she would have
been awed by its magnicence, its potent strength and
tensile tendons. But, this wasnt cinematic beauty or
a tame video game. This was a ve-foot high, thickly
barrelled predator with two sinister canines jutting out
from its upper jaw and a primal look in its eyes. A look
which rmly categorized her as prey.
As if to underline this terrifying reality, the beast
moves forward on the branch, the thick sinews of its
shoulders rippling with every step and just where the
branch tapers off, still a good eight feet away from
her, it pauses with its paw suspended in mid-air. Mira
watches with rising panic as the beast then hangs its
head low and giving her a good display of its killer
mandibles, it . . . growls.
Mira has subconsciously been holding her breath all
this while, but as she hears that primal guttural sound,
she sucks in a sharp breath. She clasps a hand over her
mouth to bottle the scream bubbling in her throat. Her
eyes widen with terror as she realizes what the beast
plans to do, right before it hoists itself in the air and
with a terrifying sound of rage, lunges towards her. All
the jungle sounds around her fade away, as she gazes
TIGER, TIGER 7
in horror at the savagery of those eyes, now just a foot
away from her face.
This is how Im going to die. Stuck in a net, dangling
from a tree, while a ravenous predator gouges and
claws at my body. Death wont be easy. It will be drawn
out and very, very painful.
As these thoughts race through her mind, she
suddenly realizes that the eyes which were focused on
her a few seconds ago, have in fact . . . disappeared.
All the jungle sounds come rushing back to her and
Mira kicks her feet in a belated reaction, her panic
overriding any latent awareness of her fractured ankle.
She tries to scramble back but her attempts only result
in the net swaying wildly while a gut-wrenching pain
in her leg wrings out a sharp cry from her.
Mira snaps her head around, expecting to see sharp
claws clenching onto some part of the net, but no, thank
the fates, she is out of reach. She looks down and sure
enough the black beast is there, pacing below the net,
circling it, as if expecting it to fall down. Startled at
the thought, she looks up at the branch to which the
contraption is tied. It looks sturdy and safe.
The rope seems to be tightly wound around the
branch and when she brushes her ngers against the
net, she realizes it is coated with a metal lining of some
sort. The trap which holds her captive is completely
breach-proof.
The knowledge makes her shoulders slump in
relief. As the irony of her situation sinks in, she smirks
to herself, but the tilt of her lips feels so alien, the
humour so weary and her fate so doomed that even the
absurdity of it all doesnt succeed in making her smile.
The beast doesnt try to pounce on her again,
8 INFINITUDE
preferring to pace around on the ground instead. She
watches the feline creature and thinks of the moment
when it had roared at her. Long canines dripping with
froth. Protracted talons impatient to score. An image
of its gaping mouth and razor-sharp teeth ickers
through her mind and a shiver runs down her spine.
The predator baying for her blood down below is
not just a beast but one of the new breeds. Stronger,
deadlier and much smarter.
When the new breed stops pacing and stations itself
under a tree, Mira uses the time to worry about what
could have happened to Neel. As the daylight fades
away, her despair escalates. Hunger starts gnawing on
her insides till it feels like it is raking her open from
within. Relenting, she opens the rest of the nutri strip
and puts it in her mouth. For a few moments, she simply
savours the weight of it on her tongue.
She had never imagined a moment like this.
Snacking, while dangling twenty feet above the ground
with a bloodthirsty predator waiting below to dine on
her. A sudden deafening clap of thunder shakes her
out of her thoughts.
Oh! Come on. She looks up instinctively, but of
course, there is no sky to be seen. All she can see is the
thick canopy of leaves above. Hopefully, it will shelter
her from the impending storm.
It starts pouring, softly at rst and then in torrents.
She cowers in the net, her body convulsing as each
roar seems to get closer and louder until she feels her
sternum vibrate with every thunderous lashing. The
canopy does protect her from a direct assault of the
rain but the water soon starts dripping, forming steady
streams, cascading from the channels of leaves and
TIGER, TIGER 9
branches above her. She peers down and nds the new
breed gone. Maybe the fates have nally decided to
throw a little luck her way? But as the night approaches
and the temperature drops drastically, Mira doesnt feel
so lucky anymore. Shivering in her drenched clothes
with the cold intensifying her pain, she begs for relief.
The darkness spreads through the shower mist
like dissolving ink, till it envelopes her rmly within
its unyielding arms. She sits there helpless with her
eyesight completely robbed. Her ngers dget, seek
her lips, trace them, rub against the curve of her chin,
trying to make sure her body hadnt dissolved into this
absolute state of nothingness.
As the hours pass, Mira slowly submits herself to it.
She lets the darkness turn into a crushing shroud and
the rainfall into a dull rhythmic patter. She imagines
her situation being played out in a movie. What would
the actor do? Cover her ears tightly and stretch her
mouth in a silent empty scream? Rock back and forth
in extreme distress?
She contemplates these actions for a second, before
snubbing the thought. She is much too physically
worn out to attempt anything so dramatic. All she can
manage is to sit motionless with her knees digging
into her chest in a completely futile effort to preserve
body heat.
The cold is as uncompromising and as unforgiving,
as everything else around her. Even the beat of the
rainfall soon begins to sound like an evil chant stabbing
her ears, piercing straight through her brain.
Nature is a heartless badger, Mira despairs. It is
not just about green dewy meadows and laughing
waterfalls. It is also about ice that can chill marrows,
10 INFINITUDE
forest res that can melt skin off bones, oods that
can rip apart limbs and droughts that can leave you
parched, begging for mercy at her feet.
Mira realizes all this along with another certainty that
she has refused to accept till now. No one is coming to
rescue her, at least, not tonight. It would be impossible
for anyone to tread through the jungle in this weather.
Shrinking into herself, she tries to capture some
warmth but the icy despair is unrelenting. It soaks
in through her skin, to her bones while she sits there
stooped in her net, unbearably conscious through it all.
The tears come. Silent desolation turning into wracking
sobs. She cries for a long time, till there is nothing
left inside of her, till her whole body feels frozen and
anaesthetized. Till the numbness nally seeps into her
mind and she surrenders herself to it.
An annoying buzz resounds in her head and for a
second, she thinks it is the alarm on her morphe. The
thought shakes her up from her slumber. Realization
dawns as she opens her eyes and the glimmer that
had risen in her heart is crushed. There are ies
buzzing around her, attracted to the sweat and grime
of her body.
Even though she tries to swat them away, the
persistent beings keep gathering all around her. The
repellent! Mira strains to get it out of her pocket and then
sprays it liberally all over herself. Repulsed by the sharp
smell of the chemical, the ies nally leave her alone.
Mira looks around. The rain has stopped but the
greedy vacuous air still hangs onto the moisture. Her
grimy clothes cling to her body but it doesnt bother her.
What really worries her is the fever raging within her
body, making her shiver, even in this sweltering heat.
TIGER, TIGER 11
Maybe shes caught a cold from being drenched
through the night? The nagging voice in her head
whispers otherwise. Infection. INfection. INFECtion.
She covers her ears and blocks it out before she starts
believing it. But Mira knows. If she isnt freed by the
end of the day, she might be in a bad shape. She cant
keep waiting to be rescued.
Mira takes a small sip from the bottle and looks up.
The net is twisted on itself, effectively sealing her in.
Maybe she can swivel herself around, make an opening
and then try climbing out of it. Of course, she would
have to do all this with just one leg and with every
slight nudge feeling like a saw was grating through her
fractured foot. But then it is better do it now, when she
can at least think clearly than later, when the infection
would clog all her senses.
Mira makes her decision. She doesnt want to pass
out and die, just sitting and waiting for someone to
save her.
She starts jerking her body sideways, trying to make
the net rotate on itself. She manages it on her fourth
attempt. After a few minutes, when the world nally
stills and the violent throbbing in her ankle slackens,
she looks up to nd a small opening in the net.
Its just a small peek at the patch of leaves above
but still it makes Mira smile. It makes her feel hopeful.
It is her rst step towards freedom!
Then Mira does something shes always done since
she was a kid. She closes her eyes and pictures her
mothers face. The sharp angle of her nose, the high
cheekbones, the sparkle of her eyes, the wild shock of
hair. Slowly, she brings her mother to herself, absorbing
her strength, her will.
12 INFINITUDE
Eyes still closed, she clutches the net above and
pushes herself on her knees. The net swings around,
rocked by her movements. The pain is blinding but
she steels herself and carries on. Stretching her arms
higher, she clutches the net again, dragging her body
up on one foot. A hoarse sound pierces her skull and
resonates through her brain.
When it stops, she realizes it was her own shriek.
How can her own voice sound so alien to her ears? And
how can it hurt so much? Will she eventually lose her
leg? It seems improbable that the cause of such pain,
such torment can ever be repaired.
She squeezes her eyes tight, trying hard to hold on
to the faltering image of her mother. Tears streak down
her face and she breaks down. She prays, promising
to do anything it takes.
Please, dear fate. Just let me get out of here. Just please.
She opens her eyes and pulls in a deep breath. Then
snagging her left foot in the bindings of the net, she
hoists herself up. The pain is almost unbearable but she
keeps going. Her hands come nearer to the rope from
which the net is dangling and as she reaches forward
to grab it, a vicious spasm shoots through her hands.
Then everything happens in a few seconds.
As she gasps and pulls back on a reex, she loses her
footing and plummets, landing straight on her back at
the bottom of the net. The net starts swinging violently.
And it takes a long time before it becomes still again.
Mira just lays there with her eyes squeezed shut.
During the fall, she had twisted her broken ankle and
now the pain is much, much worse. Its unlike anything
she has ever experienced before. She grits her teeth,
grunting with the effort of reigning in her anguish and
TIGER, TIGER 13
frustration. She lays there for a long time. A sense of
numb defeat seeps through her until she no longer
feels the despair, or the horror of it all. She just lays
there motionless, feeling empty and for the rst time,
devoid of any hope.
Her ngers still tingle from the sharp pinpricks she
had felt on clutching the rope. Thinking about it now,
she snaps her eyes open and looks up at the rope. As
her eyes focus on it, she realizes to her horror that its
actually a ne barbed wire. How did she miss this
before and why did someone set up such a sick trap
in the jungle? Is it even meant for trapping animals?
The possibilities seem chilling. Not what she wants to
dwell on in her current state.
The baked morning air has dried up her clothes but
her body quivers with fatigue and illness. Giving in,
she drinks some more water, acutely aware of every
drop going down her throat. Time passes and as the
heat soars, it lulls her into a stupor.
When she opens her eyes again, bitter disappointment
lls her. Shed been secretly hoping that when she
would wake up, shed be back at the house, tucked
safely in her bed. Mira swallows the dry lump in her
throat and wipes off her tears. Self-pity is not something
she can afford to indulge in right now.
Judging by the stiing heat wafting through the
jungle, it must already be noon and Mira knows she
wont survive another night here. Its just sheer luck
she even survived the rst one and she cannot bank
on being able to endure more near-misses.
The rain fended off the predators last night but the
chances of that happening again are slim. And without
the rain, the jungle will be a much livelier place tonight.
14 INFINITUDE
Stuck in the trap with nowhere to go, she will be the
easiest prey available.
A soft uttering sound shakes her out of her dismal
thoughts. Mira looks around in dread but relaxes when
she sees a hummingbird hovering nearby. She watches
as its long black bill pierces the stamens of a ower,
searching for nectar. The bird lingers over the ower
till it has had its ll. As she watches it y away, an idea
begins to form in her head. Its crazy. Probably stupid
and denitely suicidal.
Perhaps her traumatic situation is nally getting to
her. Mira grins and brings her hand close to her mouth.
A moments hesitation and then she bites down on it,
hard. The skin doesnt break even though it hurts a lot.
Still not even a grunt escapes her lips. She needs all her
reserves to do this right. Mira tries again, biting harder.
Molten rust gushes over her tongue and she resists
the urge to gag. Instead she digs her teeth deeper,
ensuring the blood doesnt clot up too quickly. Then she
holds her hand up and watches as the dark red weaves
through the mud and grime on her hand, forming veins
across her arms like a gory anatomical diagram. The
blood keeps collecting in a big drop at her elbow, trying
to gain enough momentum to break through.
Mira watches with quiet detachment as the drop
nally trickles down disappearing into the sludge of the
jungle oor below. Then she drops her hand and shuts
her eyes. Shes done all she can now. The words from
her favourite poem ash through her mind. Tiger, tiger
. . . the hand dare seize the re? How tting, she thinks.
A hysterical laugh bubbles up as she clears her throat
and then calls out in a hoarse sing-song voice, Here
kitty, kitty. Come out, come out wherever you are.
I I
TWO WEEKS AGO
Archived News Excerpt, 13/07/2099: Aleksi Singh, Senior
Biologist at Colum, has published a study elucidating
the effects of monoculture amongst the human race.
Aleksi states, Our society has homogenized to an extent
that all genetic edges have smoothed out, making our
species susceptible to diseases, as seen by last years
simian epidemic. Suzi Gupta, the celebrity government
doctor, counters, Natural genetic homogenization has
domesticated society, making it easier to handle and
more cost-effective for governments. Its a godsend! Well,
not literally speaking, of course. We as a collective race
have worked extremely hard to get where we are today.
Airway XIV, 13 December 2173
One hour down. Three more to go. Destination?
A place where none of the rules I had lived by while
growing up would apply. I had read enough material
and seen enough archived videos to know that.
This was going to be a real jungle with grass that
would actually caress my feet, wind that would rustle
my hair, insects that could prick my skin and dangerous
predators that could . . . skin me alive. Okay, no. Dont
go there.
I needed to think gutsy thoughts. Maybe with no
distractions available, Id ace my entrance tests to the
16 INFINITUDE
Rebyt Institute and then live on the afuent side of our
sector for the rest of my incredibly long life. Great! Now
all I had to do was repeat it a hundred times and slap
on a smile on my face.
I pressed my morphe waistband and a holograph of the
standard home screen appeared. Flicking my nger on
the entertainment section, I scrolled on to my approved
stock of retro movies. I wasnt particularly fond of the
horror movies of the last century. Sprinkly fountains
from sliced appendages worked ne, but a zombie with
a rusted saw hacking and feasting on them didnt quite
do it for me. I chose a lm by Hitchcock, the master of
the suspense thriller. The movie I chose was about birds.
Yep. That very one. It might have been considered an
odd choice for someone trying to lull herself to sleep but
not so in my case. Thrillers calmed me. Maybe it was
because of the stark difference my uneventful, boring
life made against them. I think watching stories of terror
and carnage made me feel safe and protected within my
planned and dull life.
Ironically, that wasnt the case with the other archived
news briefs. Those always managed to disturb me. They
would make so many things bubble inside me that
sometimes I felt like I would explode. Why didnt the
world stay as it had been? I had watched archived videos
of an earth dressed in untamed elds of silken wild grass,
shimmering oceans and smoking, fuming deserts. An
earth that had disappeared as our earlier generations
had been stupid enough to destroy it bit by bit. The
nuclear wars, the viral outbreaks, the indiscriminate
use of chemical weapons had necessitated the creation
of safe-zones or sectors across the world. Sectors which
were far, far away from contaminated sites. Sectors
TWO WEEKS AGO 17
where people could breathe without fear of getting
infected and could eat without fear of their insides
melting off. These were the sectors where people had
been constrained to live in since before I was even born.
Maybe thats why nobody else in my grade was
into digging up the archived stuff even though it was
regularly updated by Rebyt. I think it made people feel
unsettled. The movies described a time gone by, and
a time that would never be. They offered a glimpse of
a world we couldnt reach out and touch.
They depicted so many possibilities, so many avenues
and yet in our world there were none. Strangely, that
was the exact reason my grandmother used to give me
for liking them so much. She used to say, Sometimes
Mira, living in hope makes you stronger than living in
the reality.
I never really got that. Why live in make-believe and
then let reality disillusion you? Because thats exactly
what happened when Mom told me that we were
moving to another sector. One that had a real jungle
within its perimeter! A living, breathing jungle free of
any kind of contamination!
The minute she said that, I started visualizing myself
dipping in waterfalls by the day and swinging in realm
parties by night. That would be the life.
Of course, those fantasies were immediately wiped
out when she grew cautious in response to my elation
and started backtracking. She claried that by within
its perimeter she actually meant a twenty-minute ride
away and by another sector, she actually meant a
stand-alone institute smack in the middle of an ancient
rainforest. Basically, it was a place far, far away from
realm parties or even human settlements of any kind.
18 INFINITUDE
Its not that I wasnt thrilled at being able to travel
outside Sector 51. I was ecstatic. That was because I
had never own before. Strike that. I had never been
anywhere before. Ever. I had been stuck in Sector 51
since birth, to put it succinctly.
But I had hardly expected the rst trip to be to a
jungle out of all the places in the world? Really, dear
rotten fate? Really?
About halfway through the movie, I felt a nudge and
turned to my Mom lying beside me. She was dgeting
in her sleep. Crinkles relaxed, almost non-existent,
lip-lines softened, forehead uncreased, Mom looked
almost ten years younger as she slept. And thanks to
the generous leg space available in the xeppel, she
didnt appear uncomfortable. Maybe it was just a bad
dream then.
I turned back to my movie, sighing at the normality
of the whole experience. Maybe Id had unrealistically
high expectations from this trip. No one I knew had
ever own on a xeppel before and as far back as I can
remember, Id fantasised about ying in one. I used to
look up at those huge black metallic wasps and think
that ying inside it would feel really miraculous.
It hadnt been anything like that. At all.
One moment we were on the ground, another we
were ying in the sky and I could tell the difference
only because I had made Mom choose the see-through
option for our side of the wall. Even that had turned out
to be a let-down. The dark cloudy sky had made for an
extremely drab view.
But then there was one interesting thing about our
ight. We were sharing it with another passenger! A
middle-aged guy who was a complete stranger!
TWO WEEKS AGO 19
From where I came, meeting a stranger was about
as much a rarity as opening a book and discovering a
story the previous century had raved about.
I had been dying to ask him where he was from
and where he was headed, but he had been pointedly
ignoring us since hed gotten on board. Broad-buckled
jeans, white shirt, pale skin and a Stetson on his head.
He looked like a cowboy right out of one of those classic
westerns from the last century. Really, who dressed like
that anymore? He probably thought he was making
some cool fashion statement.
When he caught me staring, he looked right back at
me and scowled. It was one of those lip-curling, teeth
baring kind of looks and too shocked to say anything,
I just shrugged and looked away. Really, he didnt
have to try so hard to t into the bad component of the
Eastwood classic, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Rot,
he could even pass for the ugly bit.
Mom suddenly straightened and frowned at me.
For a second, I wondered if shed been able to hear my
boorish thoughts. But then she took off the Mouldfom
from her back and offered it to me.
M, try to get some sleep. If you dont catch a few
winks, youll be really tired by the time we reach. Use
the Mouldfom, itll cushion your back.
Dont think that will help, Mom. I snapped off the
medicated sedative patch from my arm and opped
back on my pod. Even the med patch was useless. I
give you my word, Ill sleep for three days straight when
we nally get there.
Mom let out a deep sigh and got up, giving up on my
travel-aggravated insomnia. I bent my knees slightly to
let her pass. The row of pods in front of us was empty
20 INFINITUDE
but we had preferred to sit together. It was the rst time
in a xeppel for my Mom as well. And still shed let me
take the aisle side. Being a dgety teenage daughter
had its advantages.
With long, lustrous hair and grey-green eyes, Mom
was a head turner to say the least. She was also a
certied nerd. I believe that could be a very attractive
combination for some men.
Sometimes I think she created me in one of her labs
because we had absolutely nothing in common. But
then I wasnt anything like my Dad either . . . a fact I
knew only because of the photograph Mom had shared
with me on my tenth birthday. It was my only connect
to the father Id lost to an accident when Id been just
four months old. Mom never really talked to me about
him and I never pushed her on it. I guess it was too
painful for her and much too taxing for me. That was
the other thing we both differed on. I was all for easy
going tranquillity while she was into inspiring, exciting
life challenges.
In fact, with my black hair and standard dusky
complexion, my brain was probably the only part that
matched my Moms. And it was this geeky part of me
that understood why she would want to give up her
cushy research job in our sector, all for working in a
jungle. Okay, maybe not in. It was actually a private
institute built at the periphery of a rainforest, run by
Moms old friend, someone called David Jain. She had
studied under him during her graduation in bioscience
and since then he had become her mentor. He was also
the only other person that Mom knew, to have gotten
a clearance on his travel papers.
Through approved and monitored communication
TWO WEEKS AGO 21
calls, Mr Jain had not only assured Mom that this was
going to be just a one-year stint but also that the new
sectors regulations would allow her to test her research
results more independently. And just with that one line,
he made this job a lot more enticing for Mom.
Mom was obsessed with her research and to be able
to do it faster meant the world to her. She cribbed all
the time about the constant approval requirements
posed by security on her research text.
I was jolted out of my thoughts as a horribly pungent
blast of air lled the xeppel. I peered in front and saw
the hatch was open. Our transit sector had arrived.
Mom and I started to peel off the layers of woollens
we had been wearing. Even with just the tank top,
my skin felt like it had been greased for cooking. The
security, seemingly impermeable to the heat, were as
usual completely masked and suited. I think they did
that to prevent any risk of contamination. After all, the
security was the one who kept all the sectors running
and in order. The risks they faced every day while
ying over Radres-infected areas were huge.
Two of the security people whisked us into waiting
room of sorts but thankfully, before they left, they
handed us a bottle of water and some nutri strips. Your
daily dose of nutrients, read the line spread across the
shiny package of the nutri strip.
I smirked and took a bite of the strip. Chomping
down, I glanced around the deserted room. It was all
we would get to see of Sector 24. And maybe that was
for the best. Because if this room was any indication,
Sector 24 couldnt be much fun.
Enclosing us was thick dull expanse of retro concrete
walls. They had splotches of peeling paint that looked at
22 INFINITUDE
least a century old. I couldnt imagine being surrounded
with such unresponsive gloom twenty four hours a day.
During the next few hours, sitting on an exceptionally
unyielding hard chair with the spongy air soaking
through my clothes, I came to two conclusions.
One, translucent concrete was definitely aces.
Second, ying was highly overrated. To think of all
those times when I had hoped to y, this trip had been
a serious disillusionment.
One of the tacky lights on the ceiling ickered,
driving my point home. After a few minutes, it got fed
up of its existence as well and sputtered off.
The dimmed light accentuated my tiredness but
then, I was used to the weariness sleep deprivation
brought. All through my growing up years, if one was
to believe Mom, I had never been a good sleeper. Mom
always blamed my congenital insomnia for her decision
to never have children again.
The next flight we boarded lacked the sunny
personality of our previous co-passenger. Lucky for him
to have skipped this route because the xeppel we were
ying was so dilapidated, I thought it would crumble
mid-ight, leaving us strapped to our seats in a Dr Seuss-
styled ying machine. If it actually did or not, Ill never
know, because all I remember is a few minutes after it
took off, I nally dozed off.
I I I
CASA AMARELA
History is something that happens to other
people, men rarely learn from it, children rarely
read it.
Anonymous
Area IV, 14 December 2173
As I opened my eyes, I saw something whirring
around on the ceiling. Could it be a fan? Thinking I was
hallucinating, I rubbed my eyes and looked closely. It
was a fan, with blades and everything. Feeling a little
nervous of the operable antique droning over my head,
I got up and then realized what I had been sleeping on.
Not a pod, but a padded box with a headboard. And
what a headboard it was with a massive jagged piece
of wood. Real wood. I peered closer examining the dark
nodules stretched across its entire length, etching time,
marking its age. It was beautiful.
I glanced around the room. The three walls facing me
were all old school. Concrete and opaque. But these, I
liked. They looked clean, safe and sturdy. Their creamy
continuity was only interrupted by a blue shuttered
window and two doors. The rst door, I guessed, was
the exit and second, hopefully led to a bathroom.
I noticed a huge oval mirror hanging on the wall
facing my bed. It was the only decorative item in
24 INFINITUDE
the room. The wrought-iron frame was intricate in
its design with vines entwined together in a bind,
trapping reections. It reminded me of the cages in
my Moms research lab. I shivered instinctively at the
unwelcome memory.
Staring at my grumpy reection in the mirror, I
noticed I was still wearing my crumpled travel clothes.
Rot. I needed to take a bath before I started marinating
in my own juices.
Having successfully managed to disgust myself, I
swung my legs down and got up from the bed. Then
something made me stop short. How had I shifted
from the xeppel into this room? A note beeping on my
morphe caught my eye.
M, your bag is in the closet. Freshen up and come
for breakfast downstairs. My room is next door to yours
but I got up early to talk to Mr Jain. See you!
I read Moms note again while thanking God that the
security had allowed me to carry my Morphe. It had my
entire movie and song collection. It had all my friends
names, their numbers. It had a whole library full of
books. My morphe and I were practically inseparable.
I opened my bag and picked out one of my old
vintage jeans and a brand new tunic, part of the
shopping-for-tropics purchases Mom and I had done
before moving here. A sinful amount of ration points
had gone into buying them.
Seconds later, I walked into the bathroom and found
that it was tted with the UV-Clean thingy for the toilet
seat. Thank the fates! Now I wouldnt have to hover
over it or spend time doing craft work with toilet paper
to cover the seat.
I did my business, took a shower and got dressed
CASA AMARELA 25
in record speed. The anticipation of discovering this
new place was bubbling through me as I stepped out
of my room.
I peered at the empty corridor stretching out on
either side of my room. Paved with strange red tiles, it
had a thick wooden railing lining it on one side. Feeling
awed by the strange retro architecture of this place, I
walked across and leaned over the railing.
It was a handsome house, two-storeyed with corridors
running around an expansive central courtyard. An old
mossy birdbath was set right in the centre of the yard
and on one corner was a huge concrete barbecue grill. It
was a setting straight out of a classic Hollywood movie.
Wanting to explore more, I started walking down the
corridor and soon discovered that it winded down into
a spiral staircase which emptied into a room.
My step faltered on the last stair. It was the biggest
room Id ever seen. So big it probably sprawled across
the entire length of the house. And right in its centre,
facing a wide window was a large tan couch. Even
though the couch was like nothing Id ever seen before,
it was the view outside the window that caught my eye.
Verdant elds of swaying grass stretched till the eye
could see. I sucked in a breath, completely captivated
by the beauty that reigned so effortlessly beyond the
glass panes.
A soft murmur of voices pulled me out of my trance.
My eyes trailed across the room to the other corner. A
grand dining table had taken up all the space there.
I followed its massive length and realized that much
like the headboard upstairs, this table had also been
chiselled out of a single slab of wood. I smirked. It
seemed like a lot of trees had been felled to decorate
26 INFINITUDE
this house. Even the abstract paintings covering the
walls had thick mahogany frames and dominated the
walls. Also, everything in this room was in superlatives
of size. Was it genuine magnanimity on the part of the
owner or simply a size complex?
A sharp burst of laughter pierced the silence of the
room and drew my attention to the two people sitting
at the table.
One was Mom and the other was a bulky, silver-
haired man. They were so engrossed in their discussion
they hadnt even noticed my entrance. I sought to
rectify that immediately. I cleared my throat and
watched with satisfaction as their heads snapped in
my direction.
M! Come on over, meet David, Mom said smiling
at me before turning to the man, David, this is my
daughter, Mira.
David Jain got up and squeezed my extended hand.
Ah! So this is the famous Mira Sharma. Delighted to
meet you! Ria has been telling me all about you.
Then to my surprise he tugged on my hand and
enveloped me in a fatherly hug.
Err . . . glad to meet you too, Uncle, I croaked,
feeling disarmed in the face of such a warm welcome.
I had been expecting a nerdy vapid man, whereas here
was someone who could easily ll in for the Man called
Santa Claus from the North Pole. Id read that hed been
big with the kids in the earlier century.
Your mother has been telling me about your
brilliant performance in college this year. I promise
your sabbatical here will be very fullling.
Thanks, Uncle. I hope so too. Its umm . . . lovely here.
Mom saved me from further embarrassment by
CASA AMARELA 27
interjecting, M, Ive already had breakfast with David,
but we need to discuss some things. Why dont you go
ahead and nish up? Ill join you later.
Yes, yes . . . the kitchen is just down this corridor,
David said, pointing to another door at the far end of the
room. Go ahead. Maria has laid out a delicious spread
today. But Id better tell you, Maria is from down south
so she speaks only Portuguese. Ria told me that youre
still learning the language?
Actually Mom did give me a tutorial to read up. I
guess Ill just have to . . . test my skills. Then smiling as
animatedly as I could, I swung on my heels and sprinted
across to the kitchen. I hoped the effusive display of
hospitality was reserved just for the rst day. I was
severely handicapped to reciprocate such exuberance.
The kitchen was in sharp contrast to the room I had
just walked out from. The cupboards here were painted
a radiant blue with matching pastel walls. Even the
dining table in the centre was covered with a bright
yellow cloth.
There is no blue without yellow and without orange.
Van Gogh had written to Emile Bernard. Im sure that
had he been around, Vincent would have approved of
this room.
Laid on the table, was the delicious spread Mr Jain
had mentioned. And he had completely understated
its magnicence.
There were cheese rolls, butter buns, a tall jar
of juice and it didnt end there. There was a plate
piled high with grilled potatoes and strange looking
sausages alongside a platter of fresh fruit. I had never
seen so much food together in my entire life. The kind
of breakfast we had in the sector was just the bare
28 INFINITUDE
rationed minimal. Well, that along with a long list of
medical supplements.
I poured a glass of juice for myself and turned around
just in time to see a small, stocky middle-aged woman
coming in through another door at the back. Her skin
was the colour of warm gold and she was wearing a
owing white dress. This would have to be Maria.
She noticed me and smiled. Bem vindo, querida.
Voce ta bem?
I had learnt just enough Spanish to gure out that she
had said something along the lines of, Welcome dear.
I hoped that was what it meant. Well, Spanish and
Portuguese couldnt be that far apart? Right? When in
doubt, smile and nod. And thats what I did.
Umm . . . no Portuguese, I stammered, probably
looking like a complete idiot what with my bobbing
head and a dumb grin plastered on my face.
Maria just smiled again and nodded back at me.
Then she turned to a stove in the corner and got busy
stirring something in a large skillet.
Resolving to learn some elementary Portuguese, I
picked up a bun and made my escape into the dining
room. To my relief, I found Mom sitting there all alone
reading something on her morphe.
I drew up a chair close to her. Mom, how does one
say thanks in Portuguese?
Obrigada. Hmm . . . I should have taught you some
common phrases.
Mom, its not your fault. I have that basic tutorial Ive
been planning to mug up. Ill start on it today. I took a
bite of the bun and asked her through a mouthful, So
. . . how was your meeting with Mr Jain?
Even better than Id thought. The diversity Ill be
CASA AMARELA 29
able to study here is mind-boggling. Its all perfect,
except . . . I just wish there was a college here nearby,
or just someone your own age . . .
Aww, come on Mom. Not again. For the billionth
time, this is my sabbatical! Time off from college,
remember? And I promise you, I will be studying for
my tests every day.
It is not your tests that Im not worried about. Its
just . . . everything is so new here. Its so different from
our sector and I will be busy . . .
She turned and looked straight into my eyes. Arent
you already missing your friends?
My shoulders slumped. Wed had this conversation
so many times in the last few months. Mom, for the last
time, Ill be completely ne here. How many girls my
age get a chance like this? How many get to move out
at all? And exploring a real jungle? Bring it on! I put
on my best gung-ho expression but Mom just cocked
an eyebrow at me. Okay, maybe I needed a bit more
work on my acting skills.
Exploring the jungle, huh? Well see about that. Let
me ask David about a local who can show you around.
O-k-a-y, Mom. Then I remembered something Id
wanted to ask her. Hey, who carried me to bed last
night?
Mom dgeted on her chair. Its a bit strange actually
because the last I remember, we were in the xeppel
and then I woke up in my room this morning.
I looked at her with my mouth agape. Both of us
couldnt have fallen in such a deep sleep at the same
time. What did this mean?
Mom answered my unspoken question. I asked
David about it this morning and he said that the
30 INFINITUDE
security had probably given us a preventive vaccine
of some sort. They were the ones who dropped us here
yesterday. The vaccine might have caused some . . .
umm . . . minor sedation but its going to protect us
against any faint traces of Radres. So dont worry, its
all good!
I ashbacked to the bottle of water and the nutri
strips Id so eagerly hogged down. Either of them could
have been laced with drugs. It felt so horribly intrusive.
I scowled at the half-eaten bun in my hand. We
were drugged! They could have at least told us before
knocking us out!
Mom sighed. I guess it was for our own good. The
weather in this place is harsher than our own sector.
Bolstering the immunity is always benecial. I nodded
even though Mom had sounded more like she was
trying to convince herself.
I continued chewing as she switched off her
morphe and dragged her chair back. Let me show you
around. David gave me a long tour of the property in
the morning. I still have an hour before my rst day
ofcially starts . . . so lets go.
We walked out of the house into a bright sun-lled
porch. The cool morning breeze made the strong
burn of the tropical sun almost bearable. I stood there
drenched in gold, my skin stirring, my pores yawning
and my eyes watering. Three days ago, around this
time, I had been gazing at a patch of sunless, dreary sky
from my college windows, while Mr Mani had trudged
through the History class.
I stood there on the porch feeling the rush of the crisp
air and sent a fervent thanks to the fates for bringing
me here. As I looked up, I noticed something which
CASA AMARELA 31
looked like many tiny glass balloons hanging from the
roof. Then I remembered being taught about them in
school. These were incandescent bulbs, the preferred
mode of lighting in the last century. Wow, rst fans
and now light bulbs. What a far cry it was from the
mood-sensitive lighting in our apartment back home.
I grinned. This house really had them all. Relics and
reliquaries. It all seemed quite fascinating for a history
nerd like me.
After my eyes had adjusted to the blinding sun, I
stepped off the porch and studied the building. It was
a two-storeyed concrete structure with an overhanging
roof. The house was positively shrimpy compared to
the hydra-headed building wed lived in back home.
It was not intimidating in the least. But then that could
also be because of the sunlight the whole building was
bathed in, or the blue shuttered windows dotted all
over its facade.
Studying our surroundings, I realized we were on
a hillside. The swaying elds of wild grass which Id
seen from the window earlier grew all around the
house, stretching for about a hundred meters till a
spear-topped fence.
As far as my eyes could see, the entire length of
the property was enclosed by this imposing fence, its
continuity marred only by a tall gate. A gravel-topped
road ran from this gate to the house. It was probably
our only connection to civilization.
Isnt it breathtaking? Mom said with a far-away
look in her eyes and I realized she wasnt talking about
the house. I turned around to follow her gaze and as
I saw what lay beyond the fence, an involuntary gasp
escaped my lips.
32 INFINITUDE
Facing the house was the widest expanse of lush green
I had ever seen in my life. It stretched all around us,
extending in each direction to the horizon and beyond.
And for a few seconds, all I could do was stare at it. I
gaped at the motley colours of green spread across the
vastness and the perfect contrast this lush crew made with
the cobalt blue above. At that moment I understood what
being overawed felt like. Because right then, my life, its
problems, everything seemed so . . . trivial compared to
the overpowering beauty of what lay before me.
Rot! This is so A-1.
And you can see why its called Casa Amarela . . .
the Yellow House, Mom waved a hand back at the
house before turning to x a glare at me, . . . and M, you
should really try to shake off this weird swearing thing.
Trust my Mom to focus on the swearing instead of
questioning the archaic additions to my vocabulary.
Truth was I liked to use such words. Words I had picked
up from retro movies. A-1. Trufax. Awesome possum.
Whack. Grink.
But then reading about the previous generations had
also told me no parent had ever valued the ne mix of
languages concocted by their offspring. I guess mine
wasnt about to start either.
I pointed to the house trying to divert Mom. No
towers or spires? Tsk, tsk . . . how disappointing.
Moms eyes widened at my words. Anything but
that! David himself designed the house. Look at it! Its
like weve travelled way back in time.
He designed the house? I thought you told me
he was a researcher. Maybe sleighing with the elves
sparked his creative side?
Mom continued like she hadnt even heard me.
CASA AMARELA 33
David is one of the brightest men Ive ever known.
Youll like him once you get to know him.
If he used to work in bioscience, how come Ive never
ever seen him before? I thought I knew everybody?
He left our sector much before I had you. You know
. . . your father also worked under him. David is the
one who introduced us.
Really? Father and you met because of him? You
never told me that.
Well, when David left so suddenly, we knew hed be
gone forever. We couldnt have kept in touch because
of the communication embargoes.
Did . . . Dad like him? When he worked under him?
Like him? He loved him. Ram looked up to him! He
was so disappointed when David left.
So why did he leave?
A transfer notice was issued by Rebyt though
David never claried why or what it said. Anyways,
as it turned out, if he hadnt left we wouldnt be sitting
here enjoying this view right now. Mom shook her
head and gave a deep sigh. Hes given me such an
opportunity, M.
Mom, hes hardly doing you a favour. A heads-up,
youre pretty good at what you do.
Mom smiled indulgently and enveloped me in a
hug. Youre the best daughter in the world. The words
hadnt left her lips when she abruptly pulled back. Oh!
I forgot. I have something to show you.
Pulling on my hand, she led me along the porch
to the back of the house. The scenery could not have
changed more suddenly or more drastically. The wild
grass was replaced by a well-kept, manicured garden
with thick hedges all around the edges. To make it
34 INFINITUDE
even more idyllic, there was a stone-carved love seat
right in the middle.
An enormous tree overshadowed the entire garden.
It even had a large white cloth hanging from one of its
branches. The name came to me from a movie Id seen
long back. Hammock. It was a hammock.
I walked up to the tree and placed my hand on its
thick gnarled trunk. Brown and black. Rough and
furrowed. I looked up and found the branches laden
with strange pear-shaped, coppery fruits.
I stood there looking up at them wondering how my
Mom had been able to pull this through. Even though
she had submitted our travel papers immediately
after accepting this position, Id secretly thought they
would be rejected by Rebyt just like the countless
other times when she had applied for permission
for field trips. But then, just two days before we
were scheduled to y, all the paperwork had come
through, not just to our shock but to everyone elses
around us.
Travelling outside the sector was unheard of. No one
was allowed to y, drive or go anywhere outside the
perimeter of the sector they were born into. The world
outside the sectors was lled with Radres radioactive
and viral residues. Only the security people managed
by Rebyt, who brought in supplies through the lter-
tted xeppels could cross these perimeters and even
they had to wear Radre-proof suits at all times.
And yet here we were in a completely different
world and the best part was that I hadnt seen a single
security person as yet.
Mom came to stand right beside me. I realized this
was as much her rst time out of Sector 51 as it was
CASA AMARELA 35
mine. All this must be as exciting and alien for her as
it was for me.
But then with my Mom, research always came rst.
I used to think sometimes she used it as a refuge. To
forget about Dad, and to recover from Nanis loss.
Routines can be great soothers and the reassuring
familiarity they brought could be terribly addictive.
As if on cue, she turned to me and said, M, I really
have to go now. I hate leaving you like this but there
is an urgent matter that has come up at the institute.
David was telling me about it in the morning when
you came in.
Everything okay, Mom? What situation?
David has discovered a local plant extract that might
be the breakthrough that could propel my research into
the big leagues. Im dying to have a go at it.
I smiled at her. Dont worry about me, Mom. Ill be
ne. Go ahead. Breakthroughs or not, you shouldnt
be late on your rst day.
Thanks, M. Ill ask Maria to put together some
lunch for you. Ill be back by the evening and then
well catch up.
Okay, Mom.
She gave me a quick hug and then hurried back to
the house. I stood there watching her leave, thinking
about where to pick up my studies from. History or Wars?
Somehow Wars seemed more appealing to my jet-
lagged mind. I switched on my morphe and icked on
the notes. Perching myself on the hammock, I adjusted
the display visibility and started browsing through the
rst page.
The warmth of the suns rays filtering through
the fruit-laden tree and the lovely herby aromas
36 INFINITUDE
from Marias kitchen lulled me into a state of perfect
wellbeing. The calmness of the moment seeped into
my very pores and my eyelids drooped in a delicious
snooze. Relenting, I nally shut my eyes.
Suddenly something else equally delicious ooded
my dream state. An intense feeling coursed through
me. It was like my entire body had melted into non-
existence and then, just as suddenly, it became sharper,
turning into a tantalizing reball, so excruciatingly
believable that I could taste it. That was it! The root
of this spreading warmth was my mouth and my lips.
My heart was throbbing as I drew in a sharp breath
and a musky, woodsy smell lled me, shaking me
out of my delirium. I opened my eyes with a start and
tried to stand up, completely forgetting that I was in a
hammock. The realization only came as I tumbled and
landed face down on the grass.
Oh! The landing hadnt hurt me, the grass had
cushioned it well. I was more worried about someone
having witnessed my stupidity. I looked around. There
was no one there. Thank the fates.
Rot! What kind of dream was that? I muttered to
myself. The jet-lag must be seriously getting to me.
For a few minutes, I just sat there on the ground
feeling dazed from what I had just experienced. A
residual queasiness had me clutching my stomach
which chose that exact same moment to rumble loudly.
My shoulders slumped and I grinned. Just jet-lag, after
all. I must have dozed off for a few hours and missed
lunch time.
Switching off my morphe, I walked back to the
house. Maria showered me with her warm smile as
soon as I stepped in the kitchen.
CASA AMARELA 37
Sentar-se, she said waving a hand towards the
dining chair. The table was already set with plates and
cutlery. This would take some getting used to. The lack
of having to fend for ones own meals.
I followed her cue and took a seat at the table as
she whipped out a dish from the oven and placed it
in front of me with a proud ourish of her hands. We
shared a goofy grin with each other before I mumbled
my gratitude using my extensive knowledge of the
Portuguese language. Which now extended to about
three words.
Once Maria had gone back to her dicing, I took off
the lid of the dish.
Delicious smells wafted up from a herb-and-cheese-
crusted baked sh and assaulted my senses making
my stomach growl almost painfully in anticipation.
This belonged to the genus of dishes Mom reserved for
special occasions. If this is what got served here for lunch
every day, settling in was not going to be an issue at all.
Without further thought, I wolfed down a large helping.
I wanted to talk to Maria, ask her questions about
the house, the inhabitants, but I guess for that Id have
to quit lolling around in hammocks and get started on
the language tutorial.
Twenty minutes later when my stomach was full to
the point of bursting, I walked up to my room.
When I stepped inside the room, I found that the
day had suddenly turned sticky and humid. The cool
breeze owing in from the window did nothing to
alleviate the situation.
I looked up and scowled at the useless piece of junk
called the fan hanging from the roof. The ugly metal
contraption would have come real handy, if Id only
38 INFINITUDE
known how to switch it on. Earlier Id kept waving my
hands under it to activate its motion sensors, searched
for any remote devices in the room but had come up
with nothing that would activate it.
Now with no other option, I just sat and sweated
by the window and plunged into my course material.
Hours later, I was still engrossed when I heard a
knock on the door and Mom peeped in.
Hows it going? She walked in and icked a button
on the wall which I had completely overlooked before.
The fan came to life, whirring out a blissful breeze. It
had been as simple as that. I looked down at the tunic
plastered to my body and scowled.
Mom mistook my stunned silence for deafness. So
. . . how was your day?
I nodded my head. Good. Yours?
Busy but great. David showed me some of the
research ideas hes pursuing and it all looks interesting.
What did you do all day?
I knew she was checking to see if I had been bored
to death and I decided it was only fair to answer her
truthfully. It was umm . . . interesting.
Oh?
My cheeks burned at the thought of what I had
experienced in the garden but it wouldnt be smart to
elaborate on my craziness, especially to Mom.
I slept off in the hammock under the tree, had an
awesome lunch and then studied Wars. What more
could one ask for in life?
She smiled in relief. Maria is a great cook, isnt
she? Hey, I forgot to tell you in the morning, David has
invited us to a barbecue in the courtyard tonight. He
said he has a surprise for you.
CASA AMARELA 39
Oh! No. A surprise from David Jain did not sound
like a good idea.
Mom smiled, as she immediately gured out what I
was thinking. I know he is a little . . . umm . . . effusive
but trust me, hes a great person once you get to know
him.
You keep saying that but its going be majorly
tiresome going through an entire evening of ho!ho!ho!
Really, M! She put a hand on her mouth, covering
her giggles. Come on, dont be such a spoilsport!
Alright, Mom. Any clue on what this surprise is?
He refused to tell me. Maybe hes cooking for us . . .
who knows?
Thats just great! O-k-a-y, Ill be down by 7 p.m.
Right. Ill go freshen up. See you.
I got up from my bed and stretched. It was half past
six. I still had half an hour. I decided to take a long
bath. The novelty of soaking in unheated cool water
hadnt worn out just yet. And as I lay there dissolving
the days sweat off my skin into a fragrant bath, I was
sure it wasnt going to wear out anytime soon.
I changed into an old summer dress. It had been
a birthday gift from my Mom who loved yellow
anywhere except on herself. It was a little short for
my new height and t snugly in all the right places,
however, it was perfect for this humid place. Anyway,
there was no one apart from Mom, Maria and Mr Jain
to see me here.
I stepped out into the corridor and was greeted by
the inviting aromas of meat roasting over charcoals.
Hmmm. So the barbecue grill was not just a relic after
all. I looked down at the long corridor. The daylight
was almost gone but the lights from the courtyard
40 INFINITUDE
down below lightened up the darkness a bit. I leaned
over the railing and peered down, careful not to draw
attention to myself.
Mom was standing with Mr Jain in one corner of the
courtyard. At the other end, two boys and a girl were
sitting in a huddle, watching something on a scroll-up.
My eyes widened as I realized that they looked around
my age. Mom hadnt told me anything about them!
Who were they?
I stepped back from the railing, intending to go
down to nd some answers but then I looked back at
the dark corridor and changed my mind. It seemed
like a good time to explore the rest of the house while
all the occupants were clearly enjoying themselves
downstairs. I walked in the opposite direction and
passed by what was probably Moms room.
Turning right, I noticed two more closed doors before
stepping into the corridor directly opposite my room.
One of the doors here was open but the room inside
was dark.
However once my eyes adjusted to the darkness,
things became much more discernible. It also helped
that the window shutters were open, letting in some
moonlight.
Peering inside, I realized this room was very similar
to mine. There was the same set of table and chair,
cream-coloured walls and a magnicent wooden bed.
The room was empty but I still hesitated at the doorway
feeling like an intruder. And thats when I saw them.
Stacked one on top of the other in one corner of the
oor. Books! Real printed ink and paper books. Musty,
dog-eared and crinkled books!
I debated stepping inside and having a look at them.
CASA AMARELA 41
It wasnt the right thing to do but how often did one
come across such a loot?
What the heck! Just a quick peek at the titles and
then Id go downstairs. Cross my heart and swear to e.
I stepped into the room and headed straight for the
pile. What a collection! I had stumbled upon the mother
of all treasures here. There was Orwell, Tagore, Ghosh,
Fitzgerald.
I had read many of them on my morphe but then
there was something to be said about being able to feel
their weight in between my hands. I picked up one of
my old favourites kept right on top of one of the stacks
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith.
I was about to open it and read the opening line,
when a sudden sound from behind froze me to the spot.
The prospect of being caught going through someone
elses possessions seemed scary and embarrassing all
at once.
I slowly swung around on my heels, lled with dread.
My body stilled as my eyes tagged the dark
silhouette covering the doorway. The stranger was a
few feet taller than me. His shaved head sloping into
distinct ear lobes, a thick neck and broad masculine
shoulders. I tilted my head up, to catch a glimpse of
his face but it was completely shrouded in the dark.
Maybe he realized my predicament because right then
he stepped closer.
I instinctively stepped back. My heart skipped a
beat as I stared at the face now swathed in moonlight.
Massive brow, sparse eyebrows, deep-seated eyes, a
broken aquiline nose and a ruddy jaw. Everything was
a bit disproportionate. It was not a handsome or even
a cute face. It was . . . menacing. A face you would
42 INFINITUDE
run away from in a dark alley. But then, there was
something there that would make you look back. Just
once. Just to be sure.
Maybe it was the eyes that did it for him. It was
hard to describe their colour. Brown but also black.
They were dark but more translucent, like two blazing
luminous oceans. As they gazed into mine and held
them captive, I realized what they reminded me of.
A painting I had seen once in an old article in the
archives A tumultuous black sea ecked with frothy
yellow and brown. Tempest, was what the artist had
named it.
Your name? he asked in a deep voice.
I blanked out. He is asking for your name. Your
name. Which is . . .
Mira! I spluttered out. Err . . . Mira Sharma.
M-y-r-a-h Sharma. He rolled my name on his
tongue, drawing it out, making it sound exotic. He
pronounced it My-rah and not Mee-ra, like it was
supposed to. I had no intention of correcting him. Ever.
Not Tempest then? he asked with a straight face.
Rot! Had I said that out loud? Oh, horror!
Err . . . no. Its denitely Mira Sharma.
So what is Mira Sharma doing in my room in the
dark? Is this an ambush? He arched up an eyebrow.
Should I be scared?
I stared back at his face which looked like it had
been set in stone but then I noticed the wicked glint
in his eyes. Good. Now, this, I could handle. I was the
queen of belligerence after all. I was raised learning
hand-to-hand combat. That does scare most people.
I crossed my arms over my chest and jutted out a hip
while secretly wondering what his response was going
CASA AMARELA 43
to be because he looked like someone who couldnt be
put out that easily.
And I was right.
He nipped his lips to suppress a smile and rubbed
his jaw. Terrifying, Im sure. So, I guess you usually
assail your victims with literature? He gave a pointed
look at the book I still clutched in my hand.
I immediately ipped the book on the bed and glared
back at the stranger. Well, words are like weapons . . .
. . . and its dangerous to borrow them from the
arsenal of the enemy, he nished the quote without
missing a beat.
I glowered into his eyes with all the indignation I
could muster. I hadnt expected this. Id never had much
of a competition back home, intellectually speaking.
The stranger looked down at me with his forehead
scrunched up. Impressive, Ms Sharma. I didnt know
George Santayana was a part of the academic program
these days.
Mira, I corrected him. And no, he isnt.
He didnt say anything except to lean against the
door, blocking any chance of escape.
Okay now, I was just looking through these books
here. I wont, if you mind it so much. I frowned up at
him but then a second later, regretted my childish reply
because the stranger chuckled and said, Mira, which
grade were you studying in?
Actually, Im in college and am old enough to know
its rude to ask people about their age even if you go
about it in a circular and conniving way.
Now this could have been a really witty retort if my
stomach hadnt let me down at that exact same moment
by rumbling loudly.
44 INFINITUDE
Oh! Come on! What was up with my gusty innards?
I stood there fervently wishing for my body to wither
away and dematerialize itself.
Completely expecting another snide remark, I
looked up at him, but to my surprise I saw a smile
spread out on his face. And Im sure he didnt know
the potential of that slow, lazy smile of his. Because
it was a smile that once bestowed upon a person
could make him or her feel like the most glorious
thing in the world. Unfortunately, at the moment,
that person was me and I was embarrassingly close
to hyperventilation.
I think you should come with this conniving enemy
of yours to get some grub, he said softly and before I
realized I was being escorted downstairs with my arm
held rmly in his. The gall!
Okay, not really upset at the idea of being escorted
by his gloriousness but he could have at least asked
before taking my arm. I sneaked a peek at him as
we walked down the stairs, ogling at the blue shirt,
the corded arms, the crumpled vintage jeans and the
worn down black boots. He totally had the dark and
dangerous vibe going for him. Even the way he moved
had a certain feline litheness to it.
I moved back up to his face and decided that was
where his beauty lay.
The jaggedness of his nose was so imperfect and
just so, so right.
He probably felt my infallible sidelong scrutiny
because right then I saw him lift his hand up and
scratch his forehead self-consciously. I started and
snapped my head around to face forward again.
What was wrong with me? Drooling over a boy! I
CASA AMARELA 45
couldnt believe I was displaying such infantile infatuous
behaviour?
Like what you see? he muttered in a deep, amused
voice.
Utter, complete mortication. I wracked my head for
a witty response and came up with, What?
Wow. Real natty of you, Mira.
What? he asked me back, raising an eyebrow in
challenge.
If he planned to call me out on the drool fest Id just
indulged in, he would have to spell it out for the both
of us. Surely, that would be embarrassing for him as
well, right? Right?
I gulped down the lump in my throat and shrugged
nonchalantly. Yep. What?
Yes, stick to your guns girl. You might need them
later to shoot yourself with.
He just smiled and shook his head probably feeling
amused at the most inane conversation hed ever had
in his life. Aces, Mira. Way to go.
As we entered the courtyard, I noticed Mom was
still standing next to the grill talking to Mr Jain. The
younger group was seated on the dining table closer
to where we stood.
I felt the blood rush up to my cheeks as everybodys
eyes rst noticed and then assessed us. I felt conscious
of my too-short sundress and wished I had chosen
something less . . . girly. Unperturbed, the stranger
led me towards my Mom, walking past the others,
completely ignoring them. When he nally let go of
my arm, Mom was looking at me with her eyes wide,
searching my face for clues. I just shrugged. Thankfully,
Mr Jain spoke up and covered my awkwardness.
46 INFINITUDE
Ah! Mira, youve already met your surprise.
Mr Jain walked up to Neel and clasped him across
his shoulders. This is one of my best students, Neel.
Oh, I hadnt even remembered to ask his name! Neel.
My surprise? And just Neel? No surname? Why didnt
he have a . . . Oh! For fates sake! What did I care?
Mr Jain clasped my Moms hand next and gave her
a warm smile. And this is the talented Ria Sharma.
Neel shook hands with my Mom, bowing a little.
Yup, bowing a little. Its a pleasure to meet you,
Maam.
For a second, I thought he was going to kiss her
hand. Which made me wonder what it would be like
if he kissed my hand. Rot! What was wrong with me? I
tried to concentrate on what my Mom was telling him.
. . . .met your friends earlier and looks like youve
already met my daughter.
Yes. We ran into each other upstairs, Neel said
and turned to throw a devilish grin at me. I pursed my
lips and looked away though my heart was beating so
wildly, I almost expected it to sprint away from my body.
Mr Jain wasnt quiet nished lavishing praises on
his student.
Neel completed his studies in bioscience last year.
A top performer!
Mom smiled at the both of them. Thats great. Taken
after his mentor, I see.
Better, I hope. He and his friends have been
pursuing a research project here for the last few
months. In fact, they just returned this morning. Ria,
you neednt worry about Mira anymore, said Mr Jain
turning to Neel, Why dont you introduce her to your
friends?
CASA AMARELA 47
Great. A pity play date.
Neel nodded and waved a hand towards his group
of friends. Absolutely. Mira?
Sure, I mumbled. He didnt take my arm this time
and the sliver of disappointment I felt at that was
surprising.
We walked across to the table where his friends were
sitting. Just like before they were intently watching
something on the scroll-up screen. I couldnt make out
what because it probably had the selective viewing
angle thing on.
I first noticed the girl. She was, in dimwit boy
parlance, a stunner. But that wasnt the reason I noticed
her rst. It was the oversized hot pink hat perched on
top of her head which what had caught my eye. But
even though the hat drowned out most of her head, her
face still managed to stand out. Clear olive complexion,
long slender neck and a shapely torso which, no doubt,
extended into lengthy lower appendages as well.
At least her eyes are plain black like mine, I consoled
myself, cringing at my shallowness that same instant.
The boy sitting next to her looked younger. Closer
to my age. The broad shoulders oddly placed on a
lanky frame and the shaved head aside he could
have been any one of the gawky teenagers found in
abundance in my college. I could even imagine him
cracking those nerdy jokes. The life is pointless without
geometry, kind.
Sitting by his side was his antithesis. A big-boned,
beefy looking guy trying too hard to be proclaimed an
Adam incarnate. Cupping his chin, he gave me a bored
once-over. Arrogant. The bandana on his head had
Keep Out inscribed on it. Vain. He was the rst one
48 INFINITUDE
to get up and grab my hand in a tight grasp. Freakishly
tall, I added to my list.
Easy there, Firdaus. You wouldnt want to dislodge
Miras arm.
Ignoring Neels remark, Firdaus gave me a rakish
grin. Mira, is it? Firdaus. He nodded at the other two.
Soni. Anil.
I exchanged smiles with all of them, which was
then followed by an uncomfortable stretch of silence.
Maybe they were waiting for me to say something.
Umm . . . so, what are you guys watching? Anything
interesting?
Soni icked the rim of her hat and said in a sing-song
voice, B-o-r-i-n-g.
I saw Anil quietly reach out and roll up the lm.
Wow. It was fth grade all over again. Stares, secrets
and smirks. Sigh.
Mira? Neel was holding a chair out for me.
Oh! Thanks. I took my seat as he placed himself
on a chair facing mine.
Which institute were you studying in your . . .
sector? Anil asked.
The only one there is. Which sector are you guys
from? Their accents had completely thrown me. I had
never heard anything like it in any of our social studies
classes nor in any of the movies I had seen. And Id
seen plenty.
I realized Anil had still not answered my question
but was instead looking at Neel, and waiting for his . . .
approval? Weird.
Neel gave me a wry smile. What are your guesses?
he asked with exaggerated patience, as if not really
expecting me to get it.
CASA AMARELA 49
His tone and caginess completely set me off. I dont
know about the others but you seem to have been
evicted from la-la land.
Everybody looked stunned for a second and then
burst out laughing. Even him. Instead of taking offense,
he was actually grinning. Aarghhh!
It seems I forgot to tell you Miras last name . . .
Marple. He bowed his head and did a mock curtsy while
the other three exchanged bafed looks between them.
Is not!
Is too.
Not.
Is.
I snapped my mouth shut. He was playing me.
Successfully trying to make me sound like a ten-year-
old. I made a disgruntled sound. Hmphh.
Krakabam, Neel said.
What?
What? he replied, eyes dripping innocence.
I sighed and asked in a staccato voice. What-is-
krakabam?
Since you made a comic sound, I decided to answer
in kind.
I may regret asking this, but whats a comic sound?
Do NOT tell me, he held his palms up and shook
his head disbelievingly. Dont tell me youve never
read a comic.
I just stared at him for a few seconds while everybody
bobbed their heads between him and me, probably as
stupeed with this whole exchange as I was.
No, seriously, tell me youve read a comic!
Whats a comic? I asked slowly, already feeling the
pain of ignorance about to be lashed at me.
50 INFINITUDE
Neel gaped at me. Unbelievable! Then tilting his
chair back, he crossed his hands over his chest. It
seems Ill have to take it upon myself to read comics
to Miss Marple.
Soni clasped a hand on her mouth trying to cover
her giggles and then explained to Anil and Firdaus. I
think its a character from one of those old books he
keeps reading.
Understanding cleared their faces while I gave Neel
a glare that could have burnt towns. He seemed bent on
making me look like an adolescent but then he didnt
know me at all, did he? I was my mothers daughter
and a rm believer of the diktat that a rebuff was more
efcient than confrontation.
So, all of you have finished college? I asked,
turning to the rest of them and completely ignoring the
obnoxious person sitting in front of me.
Yup. Been there, done that, Firdaus replied.
What project are you guys working on? They all
did that exchange-glances-and-stare-at-chieftain thing
again. I groaned inwardly. Maybe they were all part of
some fellowship or cult and Neel was their Gandalf . . .
Yoda or Dumbledore. Maybe Captain Kirk would have
been more betting but then that was just my opinion.
At that moment, the leader of ye dubious antecedents
leaned forward towards me, about as much as the table
allowed. His eyes gazed into mine and the intensity
in them damned all my cynicism to hell. Dont worry,
Mira. Im sure I can still nd the time to educate you,
he said.
I knew it was just a jab, a ploy to evade my questions,
but the way he had said it? Hed made it sound
extremely suggestive. I had the extreme urge to ing
CASA AMARELA 51
something at him but I desisted. He was clearly trying
to stoke me so it wouldnt do to give him the response
he expected. I slowly leaned forward on the table,
mimicking his pose and looked straight in his eyes.
Actually, Im aiming for things way above the
average. Anything less wouldnt quite cut it for me. So,
no thanks. Then I pursed my lips and leaned back in
my chair. There was a moments silence before both
Firdaus and Anil shouted, Burn!
I looked at Soni. She was grinning at Neel as well.
I followed her gaze and realized that all my snide
remarks hadnt even caused a dent. In fact, Neel was
sitting back in his chair with that damnable slow smile
on his face while his eyes . . . well, they were still
xed on mine. Something bumped against my knee
and I glanced under the table to check. His long legs
were stretched around mine, encircling them in a way
that was very intimate, very improper. My body heat
ratcheted up by a few points and I was just about to
melt under the strain of my situation when Sonis cool
hand landed on mine.
Dont be bothered with him, Mira. Hes just being
obnoxious. Come on, lets get something to eat.
The rest of the evening was spent sitting by the grill
and talking to Soni. Mostly her questioning me about my
college, my friends, Sector 51. All I gathered about her
was that she had met the rest of them while completing
her studies. When I asked her how they had managed
to get their travel papers, she said something vague
about their project being approved by Rebyt which did
not make much sense. I knew of many people in our
sector, my mothers brilliant co-workers included, who
had never managed to get their travel papers for any of
52 INFINITUDE
their ground-breaking projects. I didnt push her on the
topic, though. Admittedly, I was much too distracted to
pursue my own line of questioning.
The distraction in question kept sitting at the table
with Anil and Firdaus who had opened their scroll-up
again and were watching something on it. I wondered
why they had hidden it from me.
Engrossed in my thoughts, I hadnt realized that
all this while I had been staring at Neel. To my great
misfortune, at that moment he happened to catch my
stare. Lips twitched, eyes crinkled and he winked
at me. My heart thudded to a halt and I think my
mouth must have fallen open because I saw his smile
broadening at my reaction.
Oh! The nerve! Smug frog! About to ignite with
all the re building up inside me, I looked away and
realized Soni was staring at me, waiting for some kind
of response.
Huh? I hurriedly corrected myself. Im sorry, what?
She gave me a look that questioned my sanity. I
asked if you have a boyfriend.
Err . . . nope. No. None at all, I told her and then
quickly made up an excuse about jet-lag and needing
some shut-eye. After nishing with Soni, I got up and
started walking towards Mom. She was now talking to a
wrinkled old man. Dressed in grubby overalls and a large
straw hat, he stood there disinterestedly, cradling a drink.
Mira, meet Hari. He helps David with all the jobs
around the house. Hari, esta e minha lha, Mira.
Hari gave me an awkward smile and nodded his
head at me. Prazer. Pleasure.
I gave him a wide smile and nodded back at him,
thanking the fates for the less gregarious, socially
CASA AMARELA 53
handicapped personalities he was throwing my way.
Took one to know one.
Mom, Im quite tired. I think Ill go crash.
Wait M, Ill come with you.
Dont worry Mom. I know my way around. See ya
tomorrow. Boa noite, Hari. Prazer.
I swung around on my heels, feeling smug about
having dished out the right Portuguese. Planning on
making a speedy exit, I started walking towards the
stairs and was already halfway through the courtyard
when Mom called out loudly from behind me. M,
remember to brush your teeth, turn on the fan and open
the shutters before you sleep.
I stood still for a second, too stunned to respond.
Mom had been reminding me to brush my teeth since
Id discovered the beauty of the opposable thumb so
she probably hadnt wanted to break the sanctity of our
nightly ritual. And why would a thing like my absolute
and complete humiliation deter her in any way? My
own Mom! Aargh!
Hoping for the second time that night that I had the
power to wither away at will, I kept my eyes focused on
the stairs and all but sprinted up to my room imagining
all the while how the group downstairs would be
snickering at me.
As soon as I was inside my room, I leaned against the
door and just practiced even breathing for a few minutes.
When my breath nally steadied, I switched on the
fan, changed into my pyjamas, brushed my teeth and
collapsed on the bed.
And here Id thought I was the only one whod read
Santayana and Christie. This was the last thought that
itted through my mind before I fell asleep.
I V
THE CREST
Archived News Excerpt 13/07/2029: Immortal cells
are not a myth. Discovered in 1954, they came from
a woman named Henrietta Lacks. Her cells had
the ability to proliferate indefinitely outside the
human body. They were utilised in 1954 to develop
the cure for polio and in 2022 to develop the cure
for cancer. Today, they continue to be used in
researching AIDS and simian u. Is it too improbable
to expect more immortal cells to be out there? Could
it be you? Have you gotten yourself checked for
immortality yet?
Area IV, 15 December 2173
Waking up, the rst thing my mind registered was
the whirring of the antiquated fan. The next was the
cacophony coming from outside, growing livelier with
the lightening sky. The clamour of an unchanged,
ancient ritual of birds heralding the jungle dawn since
time unknown.
As I sat up, I discovered my clothes were plastered
to my body. Rot! Id forgotten to open the shutters in
the night. Now the trapped air inside the room had
become uncomfortably spongy. My evaporated sweat
had probably contributed to half of its saturation.
Mentally gagging at that thought, I quickly got off
CASA AMARELA 55
the bed and opened the shutters. As the view outside
revealed itself, I stopped in my tracks.
Below was the thrilling freshness of the lush dewy
green. Above, the sun hadnt fully risen yet. Steamy
wisps of orange and red swirled lazily, unwilling to
leave. I stood there for a few minutes watching them
curl, fade and then melt away under the heat of the
rising sun, the gold slowly simmering into a white
roar. How could a simple thing like a sunrise seem so
magical? Maybe because this was all real? I was here.
Physically here, witnessing this miracle unfolding.
It was like when Id rst seen the statue of Christ the
Redeemer during one of our virtual study trips.
Gazing at its majestic height towering over me,
Id felt something in my heart. Like a fever blooming
inside, burning into sheer need, for once, I didnt want
to feel the usual standard pinpricks but the actual
grating roughness of the concrete on my ngertips.
Witnessing that statuesque miracle had stoked my
view about the lives we were being made to lead.
Closeted and constrained, all the people in our sector
were living their lives like robots. And my fear was if
I didnt do anything soon, Id end up just like them. I
was twelve years old at that time. The perfect age for
a rebellion.
Two days later, Asha and I had tried trekking across
our sector, just to peer over a gate in the perimeter wall.
We had been hearing about this gate from some of the
older kids at school.
They said it was a forgotten rusty gate, a few
kilometres down Mart Street. Nobody noticed it
because of the huge pile of scrap lying in front of it.
They said if you managed to climb on the scrap and
56 INFINITUDE
stood on top of the gate, you could see a bridge. A real
bridge. Like the one wed seen in one of the study trips.
This one wasnt red but it was huge, they said.
Maybe it was peer pressure, maybe it was curiosity
or just a simple need for deance because suddenly,
catching a glimpse of this bridge became the mission
of our lives. Asha and I hatched a plan and thought
about it for two whole days. On the third day, right
before the activity class, we snuck out from school. I
still remember the feeling. Like agitated soda cans
being popped open, bubbling with the exhilaration
of sudden freedom, zzling with the anticipation of
our deed.
We were agged down by security even before we
reached the gate. Even seeing them had been a rst for
us. The security never physically patrolled inside the
sector. Streets, buildings, schools, ofces, every nook
and cranny was loaded with surveillance cameras.
Indiscipline was rare and severely punished with
demotions and cutting of rations. Even so, the security
personnel that had stopped us hadnt looked menacing
at all. Dressed in blue scrubs and masks, they looked
more like they had stepped off another planet.
If we hadnt been so scared out of our wits we
probably wouldve clutched our tummies and rolled
in laughter right there on the road.
They, however, were not amused in the least and had
promptly called our parents, issuing stern warnings.
A few minutes later, Ashas parents and my Mom
had shown up looking horror-struck. Couldnt really
blame them. The sight of ones offspring clad in blue
acrylic sheets being held hostage by Martian lookalikes
could have unnerved anyone.
THE CREST 57
Thankfully, they had missed the entertaining part
where one of the masked creatures had shoved our
clothes in biohazard bags and sprayed us with a vile-
smelling chemical.
Asha and I had been too stunned to react at rst but
one look at our parents and all our bravado had melted
into slobbery goo. We had bawled the rest of the walk
back to our building, promising never to repeat our
actions under any circumstances.
The next day, Asha and I had pretended like it had
never happened.
Asha. It wasnt the rst time Id wondered about
her. Did she miss me? As far back as I could remember
we had always been together, scofng at the morphe
games-obsessed geeky boys and rolling our eyes at the
together-forever giggly girl brigade. But that was until
she had decided to join them.
Then it was all about Asha and her Ned. I went
through it all. The evening of self-deprecating hes
too good for me and Im Jane Doe whining, the step-
by-step analysis of he looked at me and smiled!
moment and nally the he asked me out! ecstatic
body-crushing hug. After that, I sort of gave up on her.
My last evening out with them had been just a day
before my ight. If I close my eyes, I can still picture that
evening. Ned wearing one of his motion-sensitive suits
and the bright red vintage Jordans that I sometimes
thought were welded to his feet, hunched up with Asha,
munching on pepperoni globes. We had spent the rest
of the evening dancing in a 12hk-induced club realm.
And 12hk? It was just another thing Id have to live
without for a while.
Like it was for Mom, 12hk had never been just a
58 INFINITUDE
dismissive new-fangled gadget for me. That tiny black
box had been my much-needed escape from reality
creating such realistic holograms that it often became
hard to distinguish between virtual and real life. The
pre-loaded realms in 12hk were fantastical. Each of
them had different experience zones like the one where
you could hang out with your friends in a virtual club
or the ones about experiencing hobbies, workshops
and workouts. For me, the redux realm was the best
of them all. The redux helped us experience the world
as it had been in the past.
Oh, it felt spectacular, walking through the buzzing
street markets of the earlier century, bearing the crisp
chill of the ice lands before they dug it all up, breathing
in the muskiness of the blue oceans before they turned
grey and toxic, witnessing a world from before the
viral outbreaks and the Radres. A blue, brown and
green world.
My ngers reached up to touch the spot where
the iSmeltz chip was embedded in my nose. The
iSmeltz was what had helped 12hk become such a
success. With just this tiny chip in your nose, you
could detect the exact smell of the place you were
visiting in a realm.
At the moment though, it was completely useless.
The chip didnt work without the 12hk receptor, which
the security hadnt allowed us to carry on the xeppel.
Apparently, it interfered with the ying equipment.
Feeling nostalgic and thoroughly dejected, I walked
into the bathroom with drooping shoulders Instead of
my usual soak, I decided on taking a cold shower.
I put on my clothes, grabbed my morphe and
stepped out of my room. My eyes immediately scanned
THE CREST 59
the corridor opposite mine where his room was, but the
door was closed and the hallway was empty. I knocked
on Moms door but even she wasnt in.
I headed straight to the living room and found
her sitting on the couch. As usual, she was reading
something on her morphe. I tiptoed closer and gave
her a tight hug.
M! Youre up! I came to check in on you in the night
and again in the morning, but you were fast asleep.
I was completely zonked out, Mom. I think its the
jet-lag. Did you sleep well?
I did. Although in my case it was the extra wine
that I had drunk last night. You know how I get with
just two glasses.
So, where is everybody? Soni and . . . the rest? I
asked, trying to sound casual which made me feel all
the more annoyed with myself. What was the need for
all this slyness?
They should be in the kitchen having breakfast.
That girl . . . Soni? Shes sweet. She told me they were
planning to go to some research site today.
And what exactly is this research about? My
curiosity was heightened with all the evasiveness of
yesterday.
David did mention it last night. Something about soil
erosion dynamics on the banks of the river that ows
through the jungle. Sounds interesting, doesnt it?
I rolled my eyes. Sure it does. To you, Mom.
Anyways, Im starving. Have you had breakfast?
I did. I have to get to the institute early today.
Cool. Ill see you in the evening then?
You go ahead, M. Have your breakfast, I want to
nish this article before I leave.
60 INFINITUDE
Okay. See ya. A peck on her cheek and I headed
for the kitchen.
Neel, Firdaus and Anil were sitting on the kitchen
table snarng down food from their plates. Though
considering the amount of food heaped on them,
feeding troughs would have been more appropriate.
The chair next to Neel was empty. As I started
walking towards it, our eyes met and I oundered
mid-step. What was it about him that unnerved me so
much? He probably noticed my hesitation because he
immediately got up and pulled out the chair next to his.
He even held the back of the chair until I had seated
myself. It seemed a bit excessive to me but maybe Neel
was just being well-mannered. Well, I wouldnt know
anything about that. My old college had not made for
a very courtly enterprise.
Firdaus and Anil grinned at me, said their heys and
went back to the chomping. Habitually a slow eater, I
always took time nishing my meals but today my pace
was further slowed as I witnessed what could only be
described as a food marathon. I watched in amazement
as Neel after having devoured three sausages, moved
on to two eggs sunny side up, following it with a
banana and a big bowl of sliced fruits. Where did it go?
After about fteen minutes of synchronized chewing,
I was just about to lose my mind when Anil spoke up,
I was thinking we could all go to the crest today.
The crest? . . . Hmmm . . . I dont know, Neel
muttered between bites.
Firdaus threw his hands up in the air. Aww, come
on. Are we gonna stay cooped up in the house all day?
Well go together, Anil said, pushing away his
THE CREST 61
empty plate. Theres not much in the jungle that can
stand up to the Fearsome Foursome.
Maybe well even catch some game for Mr Jain to
barbecue, Firdaus added.
I blanched at that comment and the casualness with
which it had been made.
Of course, Firdaus picked up on my dismay. Mira
can be the bait, he snickered before shoving a forkful
of scrambled eggs in his mouth.
Neel threw an apple at Firdaus who lifted up his
hand and caught it, just as smoothly.
Noisily biting off a large chunk of the apple, he then
waggled an eyebrow at me and asked, Are you ready
to be the meat, Mira?
I rolled my eyes at him. Err . . . what exactly is
the crest?
Anils eyes widened. You havent seen it yet?
No. What is it?
Nothing much, Neel said half-heartedly, clearly
trying to dissuade any plans of visiting this place,
whatever it was.
Nothing much? Sure it isnt man! Firdaus exclaimed.
Anil turned to me. You wont believe it until you
see it yourself! Its just so spectacular!
For all the freckled frogs in the world, will you just
tell me what it is already? I nearly screamed.
For a second, they all looked shocked and then
they . . . burst out laughing. Firdaus laughed so
hard his whole body convulsed and he actually fell
off his chair.
Well, wasnt this peachy? I pushed my chair back
but stopped as I felt a restraining hand on my shoulder.
62 INFINITUDE
Mira, what was that expression you just used? Neel
asked, trying hard to wipe the mirth from his face.
What expression? I asked but realized my mistake
that same instant. My old habit had nally come around
to bite me in the bottom. Mom had tried hard to cure
me of my geeky vocabulary in expletives but I still
managed to slip up sometimes.
Oh, please! Like you guys dont curse.
Maybe that was the wrong thing to say because they
all started howling with laughter again. Then Neel and
Anil high-ved each other and THAT was it. Id had
enough. I got up and saw Firdaus sitting on the oor,
wiping away his tears. Scowling, I turned to get away
but Neel grabbed my hand.
Okay, okay, sorry. Hey, lets do it! Lets go see the
crest. Well all go together.
I glowered at him. Maybe . . . I might decide to go
if you nally tell me what this place is all about!
I think itll be better if you see it for yourself. Let it
be a surprise, Neel said, making me roll my eyes again.
From what they had christened this place, I pictured
a jagged mountain peak overlooking a vast expanse
of a dense green jungle thicket. A majestic view of the
untamed wild just like something straight out of The
Jungle Book.
Neel had already started passing out the instructions.
Firdaus, well carry the usual stuff just to be sure. Anil
you need to get together some grub for later and also get
Soni on the same page. Well meet here in half an hour.
Firdaus and Anil nodded at Neel and left to follow
through on their tasks. I noticed they didnt mind the
assumed authoritative tone that had crept into Neels
voice. It was almost as if they . . . expected it from him.
THE CREST 63
Lets go get you dress-ed for the cr-est, Neel said
in a sing-song baritone.
Real mature, I muttered while wondering why I
needed to change for wherever we were going. We
went back upstairs and Neel paused in front of my room.
I looked up at him questioningly and was surprised to
see him looking uncomfortable. He dgeted with the
strap of his morphe, stalling for time. Then abruptly, he
shoved his hands in his pockets and snapped his head
up. Do you have some sort of a swimsuit?
The question took me by surprise. Err . . . Yes.
His shoulders slumped in relief. Great. Put that on
under your clothes. Ill wait for you here.
Oh . . . okay. Are we going swimming? His response
was to smile, usher me inside my room and close
the door.
I shed out the only swimsuit I was carrying. It was
a brand new one-piece that my mother had bought
about a year back for me. I went to the bathroom
carrying the swimsuit, just to put some more distance
between Neel and me. Somehow the thought of being
unclothed in my room, with him standing just outside,
was extremely unsettling.
I quickly changed into the swimsuit and was just
about to leave the bathroom when I threw a glance at
the mirror.
I had to slap a hand over my mouth to mufe my shriek.
The amount of cleavage I was displaying was
positively criminal. Either the thing had shrunk since
I had last tried it on or thanks to Marias lip-smacking
casseroles, I had put on some pounds in all the right
places. I chose to go with the latter possibility.
The fact remained that I was much too snug in this
64 INFINITUDE
thing and the bright carmine did little to disguise that
fact. Only if Mom had gotten a more sensible black,
I could have avoided looking like a trollop. Oh well,
there was nothing to be done.
I quickly covered the scandalous costume with my
tank top and pants and squared my shoulders as I
walked out of the room. Now that the fates had decided
to embarrass me to death, I had no choice but to face
my destiny. Neel was waiting outside leaning on the
railing. Instead of waiting for him to say anything, I
walked past him straight down the corridor.
Halfway across, I looked back and asked, Coming?
Then I turned and continued down the stairs,
grinning at my rocking femme fatale move. My grin
got wider as I heard him follow after uttering a loud
long-suffering sigh.
We reached downstairs to nd Firdaus and Anil
waiting by the front door along with Soni. I walked
outside and saw a small xeppel parked near the main
gate of the house.
A xeppel for a trekking trip! Unbelievable! How
did this group manage to get such privileges so easily?
I trailed my ngertips along the glossy black metal
of the xeppel, marvelling at how different it was from
the ones that had own into our sector. Its insides had
the usual eight-seater setting but from the outside, it
looked a lot more compact. I came back to the front
noticing that Firdaus had already gotten in the back
row while Anil and Soni had occupied the middle one.
I was wondering where to sit when Neel opened the
front passenger door and motioned me to get in. The
front seat? But that was always reserved for the security.
Talking of which . . .?
THE CREST 65
I occupied my place in the entourage and before I
could question him about the lack of any security, my
attention was captured by the strange interiors of the
xeppel.
What is this? The control panel, the seats, everything
was . . . translucent.
Aerogel, Neel said, drumming his ngers on the panel.
Ah! I had never heard of it before but I wasnt
going to make that evident. Out of sync, out of sight
was what I had learnt very early from the unofcial
survival guide of Sector 51.
Neel ran his ngers over the control panel. Aerogel
is the strongest material we have in the world today.
And its not only about strength. Its also ultra-light
and has very low thermal conductivity. So rest assured,
youll be having a very, very safe ight today.
No hints on where were going? I looked at the
others at the back. A little help?
Okay. Heres one. Youll be wet, itll be dark and
there will be lots of corners for doing dark deeds.
Firdaus grinned at me but then quickly put on a deadpan
expression as he caught Neels glare in the reector.
The next hour was spent doing express digestion
as Firdaus called it, though in my books it could have
been a part of some extreme endurance program.
We were bouncing up and down like yo-yos, as
Neel ew us above the jungle performing his version
of aerial acrobatics. He had even put on some heavy
alternative music. Appropriate, considering how wild
things were getting inside.
At rst, I found the music a bit too jarring but then
I got distracted watching Neel sink his teeth into his
lower lip and head bang to his favourite bits. Very, very
66 INFINITUDE
sexy. On one exhilaratingly catchy number, he started
singing along and I held my breath. If watching him bite
his lip had made my stomach clench, the deep rough
resonance in his voice turned it to jelly. His voice wasnt
conventionally melodious but it had this early morning
raspiness to it that was just heart melting. Thankfully,
the others soon joined in to sing the chorus and I was
able to breathe easy again.
For the last few minutes, we ew over a rugged
road until we reached a point where it tapered off into
a rough trail going deeper in the jungle. Neel landed
the xeppel right at the mouth of this trail.
As I was unbuckling, he handed me a tube of
mosquito repellent, Better put this on. The critters here
are a few millimetres long.
Everybody else started getting out of the xeppel.
Hmm. Maybe they had applied the stuff earlier.
I smeared a generous amount of the oily cream on
my exposed arms and face, not wanting to accentuate
my fragile upbringing by coming down with something
nasty by the end of the day. As I got out, I noticed that
Neel and Firdaus were carrying knapsacks on their
back while Anil and Soni were carrying . . . nerve guns.
The kind that security used to carry around in my sector
back home. One shot and it could paralyse whichever
part of the body it had targeted.
I was about to ask how they got their hands on this
dangerous weapon when Neel suddenly turned to me.
You didnt cover your back.
I stared at him for a few seconds, wondering what
he meant when it hit me.
Oh! Right. I had missed that. I had forgotten to
apply the repellent on my back. But how did he even
THE CREST 67
know about that? Had he been watching me put it
on? I was thinking about how absolutely freaky that
was when Neel came to stand in front of me with the
repellent in his hand.
May I?
I must have nodded in the afrmative because the
next thing I felt were his cool hands on my neck and
then the exposed part of my back. I tried to ignore the
nudges that Firdaus and Anil were giving each other
and the tingles that his ngers were sending through
me. To his credit he was very brisk and nippy about it.
But just as he was about to nish he came close to my
ear and whispered, Its tinted you know.
Uh-oh. So thats how he knew! Not a stalker then.
Just a mind reader with good observation powers.
I think I must have looked like a raw basted turkey
right then what with the hot blush on my skin and the
oily orange repellent clogging my pores.
After he had put the tube back in the xeppel, Neel
straightened up his knapsack and declared, Mira will
be behind me, followed by Soni, Anil and Firdaus.
Then with a huge powered machete in hand, Neel
started hacking away at the dense growth. Forming
a le just like hed ordered, we followed behind. At
rst, I felt comfortable with the pace at which he was
going. I felt happy thinking that all the hours clocked
in activity classes hadnt been a waste after all.
Ten gruelling minutes later, I had a different story to
tell. Crescent-shaped marks bloomed under my arms
and my breasts. The stiing stickiness in the air along
with the sea of foliage swarming all around started to
feel claustrophobic.
Midway, Neel halted and much too distracted with
68 INFINITUDE
the oppressive heat, I bumped into him. Losing my
balance, I tripped and landed on the ground in a heap.
Soni and Neel quickly came forward and helped me
up. Great! I was already the ofcial klutz of the group.
My bad. I should have given a heads-up . . . drink
this. Neel handed me a bottle of water.
Firdaus called out from behind, Yes. Its important
for you to be hydrated.
I hadnt really missed the mocking tone behind the
inection but he didnt stop there. Unless you secretly
fantasize about me carrying you.
I had been busy glugging down the water, so I
almost choked on a mouthful of it. Soni thumped my
back as I coughed and spluttered. I saw Neel throw an
exasperated look at Firdaus.
After splashing some of the water on my face, I raised
my head and gave Firdaus the dirtiest look I could muster.
In response, he just puckered his lips and smacked
them at me. I gave up. There were subjects in which I
just couldnt ace Firdaus. Innuendo being number one.
We continued trudging along the trail and after
about fteen minutes, I became aware of a distant static
noise. It got louder as we went further ahead. A river,
I thought to myself. That would explain the swimsuit.
After a few more minutes, the dense growth gave way
and a delicious breeze wafted across my face. After the
close connes of the jungle, the open space felt like
freedom. I stepped forward, relishing the misty air. A
wide rocky plateau stretched out before us, levelling
off into the horizon.
I walked forward for a few steps wanting to get
a better look at the view. As Id expected, it was
breathtaking with a birds eye view of the jungle in all
THE CREST 69
its glory. The varying hues of green, created a living
and breathing canvas. As I looked down from the edge
of the plateau, the view below made me gasp. It was a
really steep drop. But even though it was frighteningly
high, probably equivalent to three skyscrapers, it didnt
scare me all that much. The fact that had shaken me
was that I seemed to be standing on top of a waterfall
which was emerging from somewhere below, from
someplace within the cliff.
Say hello to Baby Blue, Soni said from behind me.
Uh-huh. Baby, indeed.
I turned around and noticed Neel and Firdaus
hammering in small metal bolts in the rocks near the
edge. Anil was busy taking out ropes from one of the
knapsacks while Soni had started collecting what
looked like metal loops from the other bag. I recognized
the loops, realizing what they planned to do.
Rappelling! I shrieked. I had done it before both
in reality and in the virtual realm but never outdoors,
never on a cliff of this size and never ever with an angry
waterfall pounding under me.
Are you planning on rappelling down this cliff? I
shrieked again.
No, of course not. Neel gave a last clunk with his
hammer and faced me. We are rappelling down this cliff.
In case you havent noticed, there is a waterfall
down there. How are you going to rappel around little
Baby Blue? I asked.
Firdaus straightened up with a wicked grin on his
face. Oh, were not gonna rappel around it. Were
gonna rappel into it.
Huh? I stood there with my mouth agape while all
of them chuckled away.
70 INFINITUDE
Soni rolled her eyes. Dont freak her out. Mira,
theres a cave down there from which Baby Blue comes
out. Well rappel down into the cave. Youll be ne.
No sweat.
I watched as Anil took out some kind of padded black
ropes. As he handed one set to me, I realized it was a
harness, one that I had never used before. They were
really planning on doing this! Rappel into a waterfall!
These people were crazy!
My nerves frayed, I kept fumbling with the various
belts of the harness trying to snap them together
somehow when a pair of steady hands reached out
to help me. With two swift motions, the harness was
wrapped around my waist and buckled snugly. The
leg loops of the harness came next and were quickly
wrapped around my thighs. Successfully cosseted, I
looked up and found myself staring into Neels stormy
eyes. It was like being caught in a photograph where
the background had blurred but Neel and I remained
in sharp focus. The need to touch him, to test his reality
was compulsive.
I stretched out my ngers and met his halfway.
Hands clasped, we stood there looking at each other,
completely oblivious of our surroundings. Seconds
later, someone coughed interrupting our moment of
enthrallment. I drew in a ragged breath realizing only
then that I had been holding on to it all this while.
As Neel stepped away, I occupied myself with
unnecessarily tightening all the buckles. When I looked
up, I saw Anil looking at me with a wide grin plastered
on his face. Well, at least Soni and Firdaus had been
too busy with their own harnesses to notice anything.
Once they were done, Neel spoke up, Okay, heres
THE CREST 71
how we run this. Firdaus goes rst, then Anil, Soni, Mira
and I. Soni . . . Anil . . . both of you need to manoeuvre
Mira into the cave. This being her rst time, she might
not have a smooth landing.
Everyone nodded and Firdaus started walking
towards the edge of the cliff. I watched as he pulled
a rope through the metal loop and knotted it to his
harness. As soon as Firdaus was poised on the edge
to rappel down, I panicked. Dangling from a cliff that
was three skyscrapers high, all at the mercy of a hook
and a rope! It hadnt really sunk in, till I saw Firdaus
teetering on the edge like that.
Relax. Weve done this before, Neel whispered
in my ear. I realized I had been digging my nails in
his wrist. I immediately let go, turning my eyes to
Firdaus again, who was now smirking at me. He gave
an exaggeratedly courteous bow and shouted, So
long Mira! It was nice knowing youuuuuUU . . . Hed
bounced off the edge, out of my sight.
I had been scared for Firdaus a few minutes back
but now I almost wished a rock would bump his head.
Then I realized everybody around me had gone silent.
Right. They probably expected the fragile girl to swoon
and faint with fear.
It was time to break some ill-conceived notions. I
stepped forward to the edge and peered down. Sure
enough, Firdaus was there. With his head bent, he was
completely focused on rappelling his way down.
Firdaus! I called out to him and he stopped to look
up. I think youll have better success with what you
had in mind if you dumped the rope. Here, let me help
you. I bent down and gently shook his rope making
him sway a little.
72 INFINITUDE
Not frazzled in the least, he grinned up at me. Thats
real badass of you, Mira.
I beamed back at him and then straightened up as
he continued to rappel down. When he reached the
mouth of the waterfall, he stopped and jumped onto a
broad ledge right beside the frothing mouth of Baby
Blue. After a few seconds, I heard him yell an all clear
and Anil quickly stepped up to the edge, pulling the
rope back up.
In the next twenty minutes, Anil and then Soni
effortlessly rappelled their way down. Then it was
my turn. I tried to tie the rope to my harness but my
ngers had developed a mind of their own. Ugh. All my
pretences at being cool and condent were rendered
useless, just because my stupid hands refused to stop
trembling. Neel stepped in again and quickly tied up
all the knots.
He placed his hands on my shoulders forcing me to
swallow the dry lump in my throat and look up into his
eyes which were brown, black and blazing. As always,
they held me captive.
Mira, we wouldnt be doing this if I wasnt sure
about you being able to handle it.
I nodded, not trusting my voice to give me away.
Youve already seen how its done. You balance
yourself on the edge and just try to walk backwards.
Simple.
Right. Simple. I had a word in my mind at that
moment and none of its synonyms stood for simplicity.
I wisely kept my thoughts to myself and went forward
to the edge. Whirling around quickly, I closed my eyes
before I got tempted to take a peek below. Words
ashed in my mind. Deathtrap . . . Infernal pit . . .
THE CREST 73
Smashed bones . . . Stop! No good would come out
of thinking like that. I tried something else. Opening
scene: Grand Canyon . . . Black tank top . . . Dang
ding Dong . . . Again the words ashed in my mind . . .
Twisted neck . . . Blood spatter . . . Brain uid . . . Gah!
This was no good.
I had been standing on the edge for about ve
minutes now, sure of the fact that Firdaus was staring
at my frozen butt from below and laughing his guts out.
Not that I was going to hazard a look to check.
When I nally opened my eyes, I saw Neel looking
at me. Trust me Mira. Just take a step back. Its
that simple.
Well, when he put it like that everything sounded
easy. It was also refreshing to have him not treat me
like a porcelain doll. The rst boyfriend had been like
that and I hadnt had much self-esteem at that time to
get him to back down. The overbearing attitude and
the poodle treatment had been so formulaic.
At least that was one thing this experience could
never be called. Walking down a cliff with a waterfall
raging down below was anything but formulaic.
Keeping my eyes locked with Neels, I did just as
he had said. I took a step back and then another. And
to my surprise, it was easy. I just kept on walking
backwards, firmly planting each step on the cliff,
my hands threading down the rope, till the roaring,
simmering Baby Blue was just a few feet away from
me. I smiled in elation. The rush of adrenaline that
thumped through my veins was heady.
I had reached the mouth of the huge hole in the cliff
and now I was . . . stuck. I tried to remember how the
others had just bounced on the rock with their feet and
74 INFINITUDE
swung themselves on to the ledge but at that moment
with the thunder of the waterfall down below and
certain death beyond, I was not feeling very buoyant.
This was not 12hk. This was reality. I could really get
hurt doing this. My limbs could get mangled, or I could
get disabled or even die.
I heard Soni and Anil shouting at me, trying to
reach out but I couldnt move. It was as if someone had
icked pause and I was just stuck there in suspended
animation. After what felt like an hour but was probably
just a few minutes, I felt someone hugging me from
behind, trying to break my trance. My head cleared
and I realized Neels voice was hollering in my ears.
Rot! How had he managed to climb down so fast?
And with what? Only one rope had been anchored to
the rocks!
I sucked in a deep breath, trying to focus my
scattered thoughts.
Easy, Mira. Thats it. Breathe. Now just relax your
body and lean into me. Ill get us into the cave. Okay?
He was shouting in my ear, trying to make himself
heard above the din of the waterfall.
I . . . Im sorry Neel. I didnt mean to freeze up . .
. and you had to come down . . . how did you climb
down? Im using the rope . . .
Mira, listen . . . just lean into me and let me lead.
I nodded. Stupid coward me. Princess Snow White
could have done a better job. Thumbelina could have
probably aced it.
Neel clutched the rope above my hands and I arched
my back into him. I felt his feet build the momentum by
thrusting us forward towards the cliff and then in one
swift manoeuvre we landed on the broad ledge. After
THE CREST 75
making sure I was steady on my feet, he snapped me
free of the harness.
That was one ill-timed rigor mortis, Firdaus
quipped.
Zip it, Firdaus! Soni snapped, scowling at him.
Welcome to Baby Blue, Anil announced and thats
when I noticed my surroundings for the rst time. As I
looked around, my mouth fell open at the magnitude
of the sight before me. The walls of the cave were
humongous, stretching all around us like a giant
cavernous mouth, extending endlessly into the depths
of the earth.
The whole cavern was resounding with the gushing
sounds of the river. Frothing at being unleashed to the
world, the water had eroded the bedrock of the cave
and formed a self-contained canal for itself. A rocky
path bordered this canal and extended outwards to
form the ledge that we were all standing on.
My attention got diverted from studying the cave
to Anil who had just dug out strange-looking pairs
of gloves from his knapsack. They looked almost
translucent and had these strange criss-cross patterns
on them. Anil handed everybody one pair.
Reluctantly, I put mine on and was taken aback as
a bright light immediately started beaming off from
my hands.
Once everyone had put on the gloves, we formed
a le and started making our way down the rocky
path. I walked warily, almost hugging the wall of the
cave, mortally scared of being swept away into the
strong currents.
We kept going deeper into the cave, no jokes, no
banter from anyone. Strangely, the deeper we went,
76 INFINITUDE
the calmer I felt. The puffs of our breaths, the patter of
our footsteps and the gush of the river, everything set
up a soothing rhythm.
After some time, the tempo of the river slowed till
it gradually trickled into a steady stream. It was like
its ferocity had nally surrendered itself to the peace
of the earths womb.
Five minutes later, I discovered the point of origin
of Baby Blue. It was spouting from a gully anked by
rocks on all sides. I thought we had reached a cul-de-
sac but then Neel climbed on top of a huge rock arching
above the gully and squeezed through a small opening
there. I followed him without any hesitation.
Just a few more minutes now, Neel said once Id
climbed in behind him.
The walls had started closing in a while back and
now we had to stoop down to avoid bumping our heads
on the roof. I wondered about what was left to be seen.
I had seen the crest, Baby Blue, the cave . . . now what?
I got my answer just a minute later, when the walls of
the cave abruptly disappeared and were replaced by
pitch darkness. The light from my gloves showed I was
still standing on a rock but around me there was just
emptiness. A ceaseless vacuum of nothingness!
I panicked but then my eyes seemed to pick up
something. A strange blue halo stretched ahead of me.
I stared at it feeling both mesmerized and unsettled. It
just seemed so alien, so unnatural. Someone clasped
my hand and blocked my view. Neels face lled my
vision for a second and then we were moving again,
towards the right this time. A stone wall loomed ahead
and Neel raised his hand and waved in front of it. I
heard a soft click and then a bright light blinded me.
THE CREST 77
Theyd put in motion-activated lights inside this cave?
But why?
My eyes slowly adjusted to the change, the black
spots shrinking and then disappearing altogether. Once
the spectre fully unravelled before my eyes, I gasped.
It was like wed entered some strange parallel
universe where the world around us had been blown
out of scale making us look like midgets in comparison.
All of us were standing a few meters away from
the edge of a rocky platform which was like a pip
contrasted with the size of the cavern before us. It was
so huge it could probably accommodate the whole of
Sector 51 and then some.
The cave Id seen earlier was nothing compared
to this. The immensity of this geological formation
enthralled me. The walls were almost a mile high here,
lled with red and black crags and cuts.
The ethereal bluish glow I had seen earlier was
radiating from the bedrock of the cavern. It was softer
now, less hypnotic than before. I stepped forward and
looked down. It was a lake, an expansive mass of the
bluest blue I had ever seen. A misty radiance was coming
off of it as if the water had been lighted up from below.
Welcome to the crest, I heard Neel utter from behind
me. So this was the crest. Not the one Id seen earlier.
Isnt it awesome? Anil asked.
Amazing, I said. Are there lights below the lake?
Not lights. Phosphorescent . . . algae. Anils voice
sounded strangely mufed. I looked back and found
him standing there in his trunks. Whatareyou?
In fact all four of them were in various states of
undress. Firdaus was in his trunks and in the process
of taking off his shirt. Soni was just stepping out of her
78 INFINITUDE
shorts revealing a teeny white two-piece. I turned my
head to look at Neel. Instead my eyes rested on a pair of
thick collar bones nestled on top of a wide expanse of . . .
Youll need this, he said and handed me a diving
mask and a snorkel.
O-k-a-y. Wipe the drool off your face, Mira. I
clutched on to the mask and the tube as if my life
depended on it and ed into the safety of the small
tunnel from where we had just entered. I took off my
clothes and tried to shimmy up the neckline of the
swimsuit I had underneath. I managed to pull up the
neckline a bit after a vigorous jiggle but then realized
that the lower part had ridden up to become a thong.
Worse. Much worse.
In the choice (not) of showcasing my bust or bottom,
I settled on covering up the latter.
Just as I re-adjusted my swimsuit, I heard a loud
splash from inside the cavern. Picking up my clothes,
the gloves and the snorkelling gear I squared my
shoulders and walked back inside, right in time to see
Firdaus jumping off the edge. Neel and Soni were also
standing there, peering down.
A woohoooo and then a second later I heard
another splash.
These people were stark raving mad! I had thought
they were going to rappel down again into the lake but
diving? Was this lake even deep enough? Considering
the echoes of Firdauss animated chortles I guessed it
was but diving from this height? Mad. Denitely. Not
a doubt about it.
I put my clothes on top of a knapsack and held on
to the snorkelling stuff. As I straightened, I saw Neel
looking at me with his lips parted in surprise. My belly
THE CREST 79
did a mean little ip as I saw him staring at me intently
with a strange look in his eyes.
I dont know why but there was something about
that look that made me tremble to my very core. I stood
there rooted, thinking I would never be able to tear my
eyes away from those dreamy languorous eyes, but Soni
turned at that exact moment and proved me wrong.
Wow. Risqu. Love it! She waved to me. Come
over, Mira. Im next!
I walked towards her, avoiding looking anywhere
else. How deep is this lake? It doesnt seem safe.
Safe? Yes. Foolproof? No. But then what is? she
turned to look at Neel who was still staring at me. She
followed his gaze back to me and I saw her chest heave
slightly, as if she had just sucked in a breath. Something
in her eyes hardened, but then, all too quickly, she
marshalled her expressions. As I got close, she stuck
a smile on her face.
You know its not really a lake in the truest sense.
Its actually an underground river. It widened up over
the years to ll up the pit in the bedrock. She clasped
my hand and together we walked towards the edge.
Then she lowered her voice. The flow is hardly
noticeable and anyone who isnt in-the-know would think
the water is static. These waters run very deep but that
doesnt mean you wont get hurt. Be careful, Mira. She
gave me a strange look as she squeezed my hand and I
had a feeling she wasnt really talking about the river or
its dangers. Was she warning me off Neel? Why would
she do that? Questions and doubts jumbled my mind.
Maybe I was just overthinking things as usual.
I glanced over at Neel who was now busy pulling
something out of his knapsack.
80 INFINITUDE
Anyhow . . . here I go now. See you down there,
Soni said as she backtracked a little on the platform and
then broke into a sprint. Stretching her arms over her
head, she dived straight into the lake. It was a shock
to see her lithe body hurtling down and then hitting
the water with a loud splash.
A few seconds later, she surfaced. After sparing
me a glance, she swam towards Firdaus and Anil who
were busy dunking each other. I felt a cool breath on
my shoulder and whirled around to see Neel standing
right behind me. Be careful, Mira. Sonis warning rang
in my ears.
I stepped away from him edging sideways towards
the safety of the wall, completely unable to break the
hold of his eyes. They tracked me, simmering with
unsaid, toe-curling possibilities. I kept stepping back
with his body shadowing mine till I felt the hard rock
hitting my back. Neel stopped just a foot away from
me and I felt every muscle in my body tense with
anticipation. Then he stretched out his hand.
A belt was lying on his palm and he held it out, his
lips twitching.
You can hook up your snorkelling duct on this when
you dive.
Oh! Err . . . thanks. I took the belt from him and tied
it around my waist, keeping my head bent for longer
than was necessary. Think of something to say, Mira.
Something. Anything!
Why arent you guys carrying any of this snorkelling
stuff? I blurted out perhaps a bit too loudly.
He looked taken aback, with my question or with
my sudden exuberance, I couldnt tell.
THE CREST 81
We dont need it. Um . . . were more . . . his smile
changed, turning wicked, shall we say, experienced?
Oh! Enough with the innuendos and the evasions!
Right, I smirked. So am I next?
. . . or you could be the last.
I shook my head. No. That wont be me.
I walked up to the edge, reeking of bravado. After
all, I had to make up for the frozen butt thingy on
the cliff. I stretched my arms up, feeling the knot at
the base of my neck, the clench of my calves and the
pressure on my toes. In tenth grade, I had been rated a
kinaesthetic at school. Good at sports, dance and arts.
All non-resourceful activities as per Rebyt.
I had read up all about it. Earlier people with
kinaesthesis had been branded as having attention
decits. Too much physical energy and pain-in-the-butt
curiosity. I took a deep breath in. Time to shine for the
decient. And I jumped.
Then for a few precious seconds I felt what it was to
be a bird. Soaring. Weightless. Unburdened. But all too
quickly, gravity suckered me in. Adrenaline pumped
through my veins and a scream of pure joy broke through
my lips. And before I knew it, it was over. I crashed into
the water and it enveloped me. I came up scrambling
for air. And then it all got a bit hazy. I think I might
have hugged someone in my blissed-out state. When I
looked up, I saw Neel standing there with a disapproving
look on his face. Puzzled, I looked down and realized
I was clutching on to Firdaus who was smiling broadly
with his eyes xed attentively on my cleavage.
I jerked my arms off of him and swam away.
Something splashed into the spot I had just cleared and
82 INFINITUDE
a second later Neel emerged. Pointing a nger to the
edge of the lake, he gestured me to follow him. Feeling
a bit hesitant, I followed him but when I reached the
rocky banks, he was nowhere to be seen. I stood there
looking around wondering where he had disappeared.
I started walking along the bank to reach the other
side. I had just taken a few steps when I saw something
that made me falter. A hand had emerged out of the
wall ahead. Then as if in slow motion, the hand slowly
waved at me. I groaned. Neel was missing a brain but
at least he made up for it with gimmicks. I walked
forward and realized there was a well-camouaged
crevice in the wall. The hand beckoned me again. I
grinned and started walking towards it.
As I entered the crevice, I discovered that it led into a
small chamber. A chamber that was teeming with odd-
looking shrubs. The shrubs were not only swarming
across the ground, their thick vines also extended
across the walls of the chamber covering almost every
inch of free space.
Did you get spooked again? Neel asked cheerily
and I scowled.
No! Just disappointed with your childish tricks.
Youd rather be entertained with grown-up
ploys then?
I gulped while trying to think of a witty repartee.
What kind of plants are these? At least, it was a valid
question. The leaves of the shrubs were unusually thick
and glossy, unlike anything I had ever seen before.
Some of them had berries stringing on their stems. I
plucked one of them, fascinated by the colour. Unsullied
white, like my Nanis pearls. I popped it in my mouth
and a citric lush sweetness exploded on my tongue.
THE CREST 83
Phyllae Virdit. We have to carry some samples of
the fruit for your Mom and Mr Jains research. Hes . . .
Neel broke-off as he turned to face me. Did you just eat
one of the berries? he asked, his eyes wide with shock.
Err . . . yes. Why?
His shock turned to mirth. If Mr Jain nds out, hell
be so mad.
I gave him a puzzled look and he explained with
exaggerated patience, These berries have a path-
breaking plant enzyme in them that is not only vital
for your Moms and Mr Jains research but also crucial
for the people on this planet. This is the only season
when these shrubs ower and bear fruits. And to make
matters a whole lot worse, this is the only area in the
world where weve found them so far. So you see . . .
you might have gobbled up the most priceless scientic
discovery ever made.
I stood there with my jaw touching the oor. The
gobbling up of a priceless discovery part didnt astound
me. I was more shocked with the information Neel had
just shared about my Moms research.
Since I was a child, she had never talked about her
research with me. I remember defying all her rules once
and barging into her research lab. One look inside and
I never ever ventured there again. Cages of trapped
white mice screeching and whining had haunted my
dreams for months.
So of course I hadnt known what she had been
working on, let alone that it was a project of this
magnitude.
Neel was still standing in front of me with a smirk
xed on his face. He probably expected me to cower
from his threat of ratting me out to Mr Jain. Before he
84 INFINITUDE
could stop me, I quickly plucked another berry and
put it in my mouth.
I didnt bite on it though. I just placed it under my
tongue and gave him a wide grin. Neel sighed and did
the universal exasperated guy gesture of running his
hand through his hair.
Still smiling, I turned and walked back towards the
big cavern. As soon as I was out of his sight, I took the
berry out of my mouth and placed it inside my belt
pouch. Then I stood there watching Firdaus, Anil and
Soni have fun splashing water on each other. A few
minutes later, Neel stepped out with a small bag which
I assumed was full of those precious berries.
What does this plant enzyme do anyways?
Provides immortality, he muttered.
I must have looked shocked out of my wits because
he hastened to correct himself, In a highly concentrated
form, of course. Two berries wont do the trick.
Provides immortality? Thats just foggy.
Mira, did you know that most of the med patches
we use are in one way or another derived from plants?
So why is this so implausible? Neel sat down on one of
the rocks and motioned me to sit next to him. I complied
and sat down still thinking that what he was saying
was just plain ridiculous.
I shook my head. You dont get it. The plant enzyme
part is ne. Its the immortality part I cant believe.
Thats just a . . . a crazy fantasy!
Fantasy, he mulled over the word and then turned
to me with a gleam in his eyes, Have you read any of
the retro tales? You know the ones about the fountain
of youth?
Fountain of youth? Thats a mythical idea for fates
THE CREST 85
sake! A wild goose chase for the Holy Grail which
exists only in books.
How can you be so certain? Maybe the fountain of
youth or the Holy Grail wasnt a literal reference but
just an indication of where one could nd it. He waved
his hand around at the lake and at the cavern.
I turned and gazed at the unassuming calm waters of
the lake which was really a river bubbling up from the
innards of the earth. The fountain of youth? I thought
about the berries growing just beside it. Providers of
immortality? It all seemed a bit too improbable to me.
How does this plant enzyme work . . . how does it
make one immortal?
The enzyme doesnt provide immortality. Its just a
catalyst. What it does is to turn on the master gene in
our body. The gene that keeps the cells in a perpetual
state of youthfulness. Your Mom is the one who found
the master gene and Mr Jain is the one who discovered
the plant enzyme.
So now theyre working together to come up with
some sort of an immortality potion?
A pill . . . which has to contain a very high
concentration of the enzyme to work. Thats why theyre
trying to make a synthetic version of it at the institute.
Wow!
Neil nodded. Yep. That about sums it up.
We sat there for some more time looking at the others
tire themselves out in the water.
You like reading? he asked suddenly.
I looked at him, puzzled by the sudden change in
topic. Y-e-s.
What do you like about reading?
Oh! Everything. Actually I had never really
86 INFINITUDE
thought about it. The usual follow-up question in such
a conversation had always been about what I read, not
why I read. I tried thinking back and remembered the
day when I was ve years old and had hidden behind
a couch to watch my Nani read a book. I remembered
seeing a small private smile on her face that day that
Id never seen before. Then after some time, I had
watched fascinated as her face changed, growing sad.
She was usually very stoic, my Nani but during those
twenty minutes watching her face was like witnessing
a zzling explosion of reworks. It was mobile and
charged with an electric, animated effervescence. I
wondered what it was in that book that affected her
so much.
I told Neel about that day and about a whole lot else.
They show me a world that did exist before, a world
that was possible. They help me escape to places I
could never see or even dream of. The feel of paper,
the smell . . . it comforts me . . . I stopped short. Too
much information, Mira. Maybe I should have kept the
smell bit to myself. I sneaked a glance at Neel. One of
his eyebrows was arched up.
Yup. Should have denitely kept it to myself.
Then I heard him say softly, Pine and polish.
I grinned as I turned to look at him. Burnt wood and
autumn leaves.
Wine and hay.
Now thats just lame, I said and nudged his
shoulder. It didnt give.
We sat in comfortable silence for some time. A
beat later, Neel spoke up again, So are you in touch
with Asha?
THE CREST 87
My back went ramrod straight and I felt him stiffen
beside me in response. How could he have known
about Asha? Had he been reading my diary? Maybe
Mom had told him? I was about to ask him about it
when a big wave of water splashed on me so hard, I lost
my balance and fell. And as was my luck, I fell down
on a jagged rock which jutted into my back so hard it
almost felt like it had spiked through it.
I grunted in pain as Neel clambered towards me.
Myrah! Are you okay?! He helped me sit up and
inspected my back, No scratches or anything. Are
you in pain?
I shook my head. No biggie. Just a bump.
Firdaus appeared in front of me looking sheepish for
a change. Im sorry, Mira. I was just fooling around.
Neel got up in a ash and placed a nger lightly on
Firdauss neck, just below his ear. Then in a voice that
made me shudder, he said, Enough.
Firdaus stood extremely still as if he was wary of
what Neels nger might do to him.
I felt freaked out by the charge in the air even though
I could not make much sense of the scene playing out
before my eyes. Firdaus was easily the heftier guy and
he could have easily taken on Neel. Then why was he
being so watchful of Neels pointer?
I said . . . I was sorry, Firdaus said stify.
Hey! No need for this! Im not hurt or anything, I
said trying to pacify the situation. When they still didnt
budge, I quickly got up and stepped in between. It was
like being wedged in a mountain furrow.
Hey, it was just a joke. Come on, I said smiling
reassuringly at Neel whose eyes were still blazing with
88 INFINITUDE
anger. The haze cleared up a bit as he looked down
and focused on me. Seconds passed and he seemed to
recover himself completely.
Then withdrawing his hand, he swung on his heels
and walked away. Firdaus turned away as well but
before he did, I caught a icker of relief cross his face.
In the next few hours, we ate the sandwiches Anil
had packed for everyone and then we just splashed
around and snorkelled. Neel showed me the bio-
luminescent algae oating around in the water. He
called them re blips.
With a fluid movement of his hand he wrote
something in the water and for a few seconds, a
word glowed in front of me. Myrah. His name for
me scintillated and sparkled like a trick birthday
candle. The look we shared at that moment could
have melted a few icebergs. It was the most perfect
day of my life. And like all good things it ended much
too quickly.
When it was time to head back up to the platform,
we climbed our way through a slightly steep gully in
the cavern wall. After the exertions of the day, my legs
quivered and my calves ached with every step. The
others might have noticed my exhaustion but they
didnt say a word.
Though admittedly, it would have been kind of hard
to miss what with all the hufng and pufng I did on
our trek back to Baby Blue.
When we reached the mouth of the cave, Neel, Soni
and Firdaus climbed up the cliff to x a pulley for me
while Anil waited below. I had begun to feel a strange
kinship with him. Maybe it was because he looked
younger, or maybe because he was a nerd who was
THE CREST 89
into adventure sports. Like me he was someone who
couldnt be neatly tacked in a specic category.
As we stood waiting, I asked him about Neels face-
off with Firdaus.
So whats the deal with Neel and his nger? I asked,
thinking there was no point sugar-coating it.
Anil looked at me like my brain was mashed. Huh?
Why was Firdaus so scared of Neels nger during
their face-off?
Because Neel knows Hoda Korosu, he said and
then crossed his arms over his chest, considering the
matter closed.
I rolled my eyes and waited for him to explain. Birds
chirped, insects twittered and reptiles seethed. Ten
seconds later I gave in. So what is Hoda-whatever?
Anil grinned and got the excited geek look that
guys get when talking about new gits. Self-improvised
defence. He knows all the acupuncture points in our
bodies. Anything from a piece of paper to a toothbrush
can be deadly, if hes the one holding it.
Wow. That seems like a useful skill to have. Who
taught him?
I saw him hesitate and debate on whether to answer
me. He must have deemed it safe because he replied
quietly, His father. Hes a master at it.
A rope dangled in front of us and we got busy
making our way up the cliff.
By the time we all got back to Casa Amarela, it
was way past dinner time. And even though I had
munched on some of the fruit and cold cuts Soni had
packed for everybody, I was still famished. So while
everybody went upstairs to their rooms, I decided to
raid the kitchen rst.
90 INFINITUDE
Thankfully, Maria was still there and realizing my
starving state, she took no time in handing me a plate
piled high with food. I took it without any complaint
thanking the fates that there was no one else around
to watch me devour it.
Fifteen minutes later, I walked back to my room
swaying and staggering. The buzz of the dinner and
the burden of the day made my whole body feel like
lead. I checked on Mom but she wasnt there. Probably
still at work. Anyway, I was in no condition to grill her
about her research right then.
I made it inside my room and collapsed in a heap
on the bed. As every muscle and joint in my body
protested, I promised myself that in this lifetime, I
would never rappel, dive, run, walk, or even wake up
again. Nothing that would make me move and leave
this bed. Ever.
The last image I had in my mind before I fell asleep
was of Neels nger casually placed on Firdauss throat
and Sonis words resounding in my ears.
Be careful, Mira.
V
THE DI SAPPEARANCE
Stinger dated 13/12/2173: The CDT (Centre of Derived
Technology) has given a go-ahead on eradicating
the remaining sectors housing the Homo Sapiens.
The sectors had initially been formed with a two-
pronged objective. One was to capture the existing
mechanisms and processes developed by humans and
transcend them into the level of technology suitable
for our races progress. The other was to utilize the
human stock living in these sectors for potentially
useful scientic studies. A CDT Rep said projections
from all sectors have been met and they have fullled
their purpose.
Area IV, 25 December 2173
A week passed before I saw any of them again. A
day after our trip to the crest, Neel and his friends left
for their research project to a nearby sector. At that
time, Id thought it was all for the best. It would give
me time to get over my stupid juvenile fantasies and
help me get on with my prep work.
My daily piecemeal schedule divided into study
time, reading time and exploring time did make sure I
had no stamina left for any wayward thoughts.
In the beginning, I had been a bit doubtful of my
ability to explore a real jungle on foot. I hadnt really
92 INFINITUDE
enjoyed trekking in the 12hk trips before and I was
not sure if I could actually do it for real in a rainforest,
but then there was only so much hammock time your
brain could take till it started wobbling around inside
your skull.
The best thing was that I had managed to convince
Hari to be my guide. Hari had been with Mr Jain for
over fteen years and knew the jungle like the back
of his hand. Whatever that meant. I had never really
spent time studying that part of my anatomy. My nose
and the innite amount of pores on it? Yes. The back
of my hand? Not so much. Perhaps it was another one
of those terribly unfathomable idioms from the last
century that Mr Jain seemed to love spouting.
But even though Hari looked deceptively shrivelled
and crinkly, he was amazingly t for his age. Hed even
managed to appease all of Moms fears.
Initially, Mom had been hesitant about my hiking
through the jungle, but Hari had stressed that he had
never spotted a predatory animal on any of the fenced-
in safe trails and that the trails stretched only a few
metres away from the house. And with my speed and
expertise, that was exactly how far we went each time.
I was looking forward to the hike that day because
Hari had promised to show me a waterfall a little further
away from our usual trails. I picked up my morphe and
went downstairs. The morphe didnt catch any signal
here so I couldnt really use it as a phone but it still
told time. Plus, it was packed with all my lifes worth
of archived movies and reading material. How could I
ever part with it?
Hari was already waiting at his usual spot by the
main gate in the front. What wasnt usual was the
vintage rie casually slung over his shoulder. Perhaps
it was an added safety measure?
Boa tarde, Hari, I said with a spring in my step,
feeling quite upbeat at the prospect of a real adventure.
Hari beamed and gestured at me to follow him.
We began on one of our usual trails. It started from
the east side of the house, stretching along the jungle.
Mom had told me Mr Jain and Hari had made these
trails while they were building the house. All of the
trails had been made for essential practical purposes.
One led to a waterfall which was the main source
of fresh water supply to the house. Another led to a
fenced-in kitchen garden and the third led deeper
into the jungle for setting up traps for wild game. I had
already seen the other trails but I guess Hari had been
saving the waterfall as a special treat.
We reached the midway mark of the trail but instead
of turning back, Hari kept on going. The mark was
actually a boulder splashed with white paint. And it
looked exactly like that. Like someone had stood there
one day and decided that painting it would take too
much time and just chucked a bucket of white paint on it.
Walking past it now, I felt the excitement buzzing
in my head. A real waterfall! Maybe this one would be
even bigger than Baby Blue?
We walked on and on till my tank top and khakis
felt like an unwelcome second skin. I guess I still hadnt
gotten used to the heat. Taking a big gulp of air and a
generous swig of water from the bottle I was carrying, I
looked around. All around me, the thick mass of cedar
and rubber trees looked like they were trying to suck in
their ll of the air and water as well. It was the survival
of the ttest at its nest.
THE DISAPPEARANCE 93
94 INFINITUDE
We kept a brisk pace but were slowed down because
apart from frequently glugging down water, I also
kept stopping to snap pictures with my morphe. But
who could have blamed me? There were just so many
sights to take in.
I was even able to capture a family of parakeets and
a new breed of elk that Hari happened to spot beyond
the electric fence. The parakeets seemed friendly
enough but when the elk noticed me, it bared its long
canines in a sneer so chilling it made me worry about
the sturdiness of the electric fence between us. As I
thought about it, I realized these elks were nothing like
the ones I had been taught about in school.
As we turned around a bend, I heard soft gushing
sounds. It wasnt anything like the roar of Baby Blue. It
wasnt even the tinkling or lapping sounds that books
often attribute to waterfalls. Actually it sounded more
like someone peeing. Noisily.
A very prosaic description, yes, but very exact.
Then a few steps later, it came into my view. Barely
about ten feet wide, it had a narrow stream of river
water feeding it. Beautiful as it was, the term waterfall
was clearly an overstatement. Hari held up his hand
motioning me to stop before we got any closer. He slid
the gun off his shoulder and walked around the pool,
inspecting the fence surrounding it. I guess watering
holes were the hot spot for predatory activity. Though
how he expected any of the four-footed animals to
break through the tall electric fence was beyond me.
Hari gave me a thumbs-up and then knelt on a rock
to drink the water by cupping it in his hands. I stepped
closer and switched on my morphe to get some decent
shots. I was planning on showing these photographs
THE DISAPPEARANCE 95
to Mom to entice her into coming here the next time
as she had been spending far too much time holed up
at the institute.
A strange rustling sound pulled me out of my
thoughts. I looked up. The rock on which Hari had
been kneeling a few seconds ago, was now vacant. I
looked around in surprise. It wasnt like him to let me
get out of his sight on a trail.
Hari?
I whipped my head around waiting for an answer
but the only response I got was the constant buzzing
of insects broken by the occasional shrill cry of a bird.
I called out again, an edge of anxiety creeping into
my voice.
Hari!
I walked across to the rock where he had been
kneeling and looked around. The rustling came again.
Fainter this time. It was coming from behind me, from
somewhere beyond the fence.
I froze with fear, unable to move my limbs. But
the creepy sound didnt stop. This time it came from
somewhere further down.
It was moving away from me!
And then just as suddenly as it had begun, it stopped.
I turned around slowly, dreading the worst but there was
nothing beyond the electric fence, at least nothing that
wasnt hidden by the dense motley green of the jungle.
I peered into the thicket, fearing something horric
would emerge from it at any moment. I waited for what
seemed like ages but nothing happened. Nothing came
out from the dark shadows of the trees. The dry lump in
my throat bottled down the scream threatening to rise up
and my ears rang with the deafening static of the jungle.
96 INFINITUDE
Now what? Someone or something had reached out
over the fence and had taken Hari, but which animal
was capable of doing that? These fences were after all
state-of-the-art technology, their chain links only an
aesthetic throwback to earlier times. They had motion
detectors, infra-red capabilities and weight sensors. Id
been told the only way to turn it off was to call back
at the institute.
Apart from these emergency situations if it was on
then anything that didnt meet the calibrations fed
into the system, would be fried to a crisp in an instant.
What if it was an unknown new breed of animals that
was more intelligent than the others? I couldnt be
certain of anything except that every minute I stood
here debating, was a minute too late for Hari.
It took all my strength to move from that spot but my
survival instinct eventually overrode the terror. At rst
all I could manage was to walk slowly towards the trail,
dreading that any sudden movement would attract the
attention of whatever it was that had taken Hari. I had
to get help. I had to. A wave of fear gushed through me
and I started running down the trail back towards the
house. I ran faster than Id ever run before in my life.
Minutes later, as the boulder came into my line of
sight, relief surged through me at having crossed the
midway mark. Then suddenly, my foot snagged on
something and I fell. My elbows managed to break my
fall but my forehead bumped against something hard,
stunning me for a moment.
I got up unsteadily, my head throbbing to an
agonising rhythm but the pain only made me think of
Hari and what could have happened to him. He might
be hurt and in desperate need of a rescue.
THE DISAPPEARANCE 97
I started running again putting everything I had into
it. I was able to keep my pace for a few more minutes
before my vision started wavering again. As the
dizziness became worse, my only hope was to reach the
house and tell somebody about Hari before I passed out.
Seconds later, my right eye started getting blurry
and my laboured breaths echoed sharply in my ears
as the trail stretched and swayed before me. When the
trees started closing in on me, my steps faltered. It was
a frustrating feeling. My mind willed me to run but my
body refused to follow the command.
Unable to hold myself up any longer, I slumped and
the last thing I saw was the ground reeling up to greet
me. My eyes closed instinctively and I submitted myself
to feel the force of the impact but . . . it never came.
Instead of crashing into the ground, my head was
suddenly cushioned by something soft. Then a hand
touched my forehead and I shook myself from my
delirium to relay the emergency.
Help! PLEASE! Waterfall . . . help! My high-pitched
babbling sounded incoherent even to my own ears.
Myrah, what happened? How did you get hurt?
The voice stirred something in me and I opened my
eyes. Neel! He was kneeling on the ground with my
head cradled in his arms. I blinked hard trying to focus
on his face. As he examined the wound on my head, I
winced. The pain brought it all back with a jolt.
Hari! We have to help him. We were by the
waterfall and then he disappeared! And I heard
something . . . I shivered, remembering the eerie
rustling sound. Please, we have to hurry! We have
to help him!
I tried to sit up and he helped me by putting his
98 INFINITUDE
hands under my arms. Then he clicked a button on his
morphe and started talking to someone.
Its Hari. Hes disappeared . . . near the waterfall.
He glanced at me and looked away. Ask Mr Jain to
send people from the institute. We need to organize a
search party.
He had the speaker on so I heard a staccato voice
replying, Will you meet us there?
I thought it was Firdauss voice but then I couldnt
be sure of anything at that time.
No. I think Ill have to carry Mira back to the house.
Ill join you later, okay?
Okay.
When the call disconnected, I looked at him. I dont
think youll need to carry me. You can go on ahead.
Hari might need . . . Thinking about him brought back
the hysterics. My hands started shaking again and tears
clouded my other eye.
Neel kneeled down next to me. Its going to be
okay, Myrah. Dont worry. Firdaus and Anil are getting
together a search party. Theyll nd Hari. Theyve done
this before.
Before? This has happened before?!
Yes but never so close to the house and never on the
trail. This is a rst. Im relieved youre . . . He looked
at me and a strange look crossed his face. He placed
his hand on my cheek and gazed into my eyes, his
face grim. Then as if snapping out of a dream, his face
relaxed and he dropped his hand.
As he pulled me up on my feet along with him, he
said, I thought people from Sector 51 were better at
handling pressure situations? He gave my hand a light
squeeze and I knew he was trying to reassure me.
THE DISAPPEARANCE 99
Even though I was freaked, I didnt want to play
the part of a damsel in distress. Im a little out of my
element today, I told him with a small smile.
Neel smiled and then started to take off his shirt.
Once hed scrunched it into a ball, he used it to wipe
the blood off my forehead. As he rubbed the cloth on
my right eye, I realized it had blurred because of the
blood pooling in it.
The throbbing in my head had become worse but
it didnt bother me much. There were much bigger
concerns on my mind at that time. You think an animal
attacked Hari and . . . carried him away?
Umm . . . I cant say for sure but thats the most likely
explanation. Maybe a predatory animal of some sort.
What exactly happened back there?
I . . . I was just taking some photos when I heard
something. It was creepy. Like a rustling sound but then
. . . when I looked up, Hari . . . he just . . . disappeared.
What kind of animal is capable of coming through the
fence? It was just so quick.
I didnt talk about the next part. The part where my
cowardice came into play. When I had picked up my
metaphorical skirts and run away instead of trying to
investigate or look for Hari. Remorse grew its fangs and
gnawed at my conscience but I couldnt do anything
else now except help in Haris rescue. Youre sure
theyll be able to nd him? Maybe I can go with them
and help.
Trust me Mira, its best you leave it to them. Now
lets go, we really need to put a med patch on this. Then
before I could come around to what was happening,
he was already cradling me in his arms and walking
towards the house.
100 INFINITUDE
Really! You dont have to carry me. I can walk! I
protested loudly and tried to wriggle my way out.
Neels hold tightened. Id rather you dont. At your
speed, well probably reach the house by the evening
and time is kinda crucial right now.
I shut up after that, my mind immediately snapping
back to Hari and the animal that must have attacked
him. I shuddered involuntarily at the thought of the
strange rustling sound. Neel looked down at me and
shook his head, acting as if he could read my mind.
Dont worry. Theyll nd him.
A few minutes later he stopped abruptly and I looked
around to realize we had already reached the house.
Now I could be considered puny compared to Neel,
but 140 pounds wasnt exactly a lightweight to carry
across a mile. Especially on a sweltering afternoon in
the tropics. Would Neels physical strength and agility
never cease to surprise me?
Typically, Neel wasnt even panting as he placed
me on the big couch. In a loud unwavering voice he
then called out for Maria. She came hurriedly out of
the kitchen, stopping right in her tracks as soon as she
saw me.
Que foi!
Neel replied to her in Portuguese, speaking in a
calm and reassuring tone. Whatever he said seemed
to pacify her.
I hadnt followed much of what hed told her but
I did wonder why he hadnt mentioned Haris name
anywhere.
Cutting through my thoughts, he looked at me and
instructed, Dont move. Ill get something for your cut.
Then he strode out of the room.
THE DISAPPEARANCE 101
I was still sipping the water Maria had gotten for me
when he came back holding a small box. From this, he
dug out a spray and started applying it on my wound.
Considering the events of the day, it felt weird that
I was so content sitting there next to him. It felt wrong
and selsh.
He was putting on the med patch when he nally
gave his prognosis. Its not that deep but it will sting for
a few days. The painkilling patch will numb it. Youll
be good as new.
I nodded and opened my mouth to express my
gratitude but my voice failed me at the last second.
That was because even though Neel had nished
applying rst-aid, he didnt pull away his hand from
my forehead. Instead he did something that froze each
and every cell in my body. Dropping it lower, he traced
a soft line with his ngertips over my eyebrows and
down my cheekbones. The warmth from his ngertips
seeped in and warmed me all over. When he caressed
my cheek, the thrill of his touch rushed past the pulse
on my neck, to the throb in my chest, right to the nerve
endings in my belly.
Either he was sitting really close or my body heat
had just shot up a few notches. A bead of sweat trickled
down my neck and I had to draw in a deep ragged
breath just to settle the frantic pounding of my heart.
Smiling gently, presumably at my overreaction, he
pulled away. I think I should let you rest, Myrah.
I sighed. Just to be called that I could bump my head
a couple of times. I halted my thoughts. What was wrong
with me? I had just met this boy a few days back. All I
knew about him was that he liked to read books, could
quote Santayana and knew killer self-defence moves.
102 INFINITUDE
What if he turned out to be one of those? Those boys who
tell you that they really get you, who hold you like they
like you and then they just end up disappointing you.
I wasnt going to set myself up for one of those
clichs. Not again. What I needed was some space
to collect my thoughts and to gure out what was
happening between us.
Umm . . . yes, I think Ill go to my room.
We heard a car approaching on the gravel outside
and Neel got up to check up on our visitor. Tires
screeched to a halt and a door was banged shut.
Its your mother.
Mom ran in looking fraught with panic. She saw
Neel standing by the door and all but assailed him.
Wheres Mira? What happened to her?
Shes okay, Maam. Shes right here. He waved his
hand towards where I was sitting and my Mom nally
saw me.
M, what happened?! Why the patch? Is that blood
on your shirt?! How badly hurt are you?
Im okay, Mom. Its just a little cut.
Little cut? She looked at Neel for afrmation as
if his opinion somehow held more weight than mine.
Dont worry, Maam. Its just a nick. Ive cleaned it
up and put a patch. Shell be okay. And . . . I think I
should go join the search party. They might need me.
Of course, Neel. Thank you so much for your
help. Really.
He shrugged. Didnt do much, he said before giving
me a chin raise. Take care, Mira.
Before I could reply, he was gone. Mom hugged me
tightly. Oh! M, Im sorry you had to go through this.
THE DISAPPEARANCE 103
Mom, Hari . . .
I know. Mr Jain told me. Firdaus called him up and
told him everything.
Is Mr Jain in the search party too?
Yes. In case Hari needs some . . . urgent care.
Her words made me cringe. But it was entirely my
fault. I shouldnt have taken Hari on that trail in the
rst place, or at least I should have tried jumping over
the fence or done something when he disappeared.
Anything that happened to him now would be because
of my actions.
I felt my stomach churn. Maybe I should have
gone with the search party but then I hardly knew
the jungle and with my head feeling like it had been
tazered, I would have been a deadweight in their
search efforts. Mom, I think Ill go to my room. Dont
worry about me. You can go back to the institute and
help them out.
Are you sure, M?
Really, Mom. Im okay. Ill just go lie down for a
while. You go to the institute. They might need you
when they nd Hari.
Oh, okay. She looked doubtful but didnt push me
on it. Ill come back and change your patch, so dont
take it off before that. Okay . . . go now, get some rest.
Back in my room, I lay down on the bed and went
over everything that had happened that day. Haris
disappearance. The creepy rustling noise. Running
into Neel. Neel. What was this pull that I felt towards
him? With a continuous replay in my head, I dissected
everything, every word that he had spoken to me,
his expressions and the way his ngers had lingered
104 INFINITUDE
over my face till I realized that I was just trying to
avoid thinking about the real issue. The surging guilt
of having run away, of not having faced my fears
to save Haris life. After twisting and turning for
hours, exhaustion nally trumped my futile mental
deliberations and I slept.
VI
THE JUMP
Archived News Excerpt 31/03/2012: Futuristic guns
designed to attack the central nervous system of their
victims have been given the go-ahead by Mr Tupin.
The countrys scientists say that these psychotronic
guns will usher in the development of high-tech
weapons based on new physics principles geophysical
weapons, wave-energy weapons, genetic weapons
and more. The nerve guns will use electromagnetic
radiation and people who absorb a non-lethal hit might
suffer permanent neurological damage.
Area IV, 26 December 2173
I opened my eyes and saw a strange erce light
seeping into the room through the slits of the shutters.
After staring at it in a disoriented manner for a few
seconds, I realized that it was just sunlight. Had I had
slept through the evening and the night?
I got up from the bed and started as I saw a girl
looking back at me. She was trapped inside the mirror
on the wall. Apart from a severe case of bedhead, bleary
eyes and a burgeoning bluish lump on her forehead,
she looked . . . healthy, alive and very, very guilty.
I bathed and got dressed hurriedly, anxious to know
about Haris rescue and cursing myself to have slept
through it all. I had to see Mom so I could pelt her
106 INFINITUDE
with my questions. I opened the door of my room and
rushed out, colliding into someone already waiting at
the doorstep. Neel. Had he really been waiting there?
For me?
Sorry . . . didnt see you, I mumbled my apology
as I looked up at him. His face looked drawn.
No harm done. Hows the head? He asked knocking
on his forehead.
Still sensible. Hey, have you seen my Mom? I
turned towards her room but Neel put his hand on my
shoulder and that stopped me right in my tracks. It
should have been all too familiar to me by now. After
all, he had carried me across half a mile yesterday but
evidently I was still not immune to his touch.
He sensed my stiffness and immediately dropped his
hand. Umm . . . Mira, your mother is not in her room.
She had to go to the institute. Mr Jain had an issue he
needed help with.
What issue? Is it Hari?
Yes . . . but I dont really know all the details. Your
mother told me to change your med patch and thats
why Im here.
I stared at him for a few seconds trying to comprehend
this sudden brusqueness. My Mom came to your room
to tell you to change my med patch?
He put his hands up in mock surrender. Alright! I
was already waiting here when she told me about it.
So now shes designated me as your bodyguard and
less dazzlingly, as your doctor. So enough talk, now
lets get that patch changed, he said as he clutched
my elbow and all but dragged me across to his room.
Hey! You dont have to be so pushy. Ill cooperate
if you just ask nicely!
We entered his room and he nally let go of my
elbow only to reach for the small rst-aid box he had
used yesterday.
Mira, would you please sit while I change the patch
struggling to cover the growing blue blob on your
forehead? he asked as he gave me a bright cheery
grin, the potency of which didnt allow for any further
argument.
I shrugged and sat down with an exaggerated sigh,
trying really hard not to grin back.
Thank you. Now close your eyes.
I did his bidding and felt his ngers rub an ointment
on my forehead. Then a few seconds later when he took
off the patch, it didnt hurt one bit.
Was that an anaesthetic? I asked.
Yes.
I peeked when he went to the table again. I saw him
take out a spray can before shutting my eyes again as
he turned around.
The can had looked different from the standard
antiseptic, but I still asked, Antiseptic?
No.
I waited for him to tell me what it was but I guess he
wasnt given to conversing while providing medical aid.
Top-secret drug with supernatural healing powers?
I asked.
Spot on. I had my eyes shut so I couldnt see his
face, but I heard the smile in his voice. A moment later
when I opened my eyes, I caught him looking at me.
And just for a second, I got a glimpse of something pure
and bare in his eyes. It was undisguised happiness,
laughter and contentment. Everything all at once. But
just as our eyes met, his face closed in again.
THE JUMP 107
108 INFINITUDE
So what do I get for my services rendered here? he
asked, wearing his usual smirk.
Hmm . . . I could treat you to some awesome
breakfast. I had it at this place nearby. In fact what do
you know? Its just downstairs!
Neel shook his head and then grinned. What a nd!
So shall we?
Sure. And then you can tell me about Hari. You were
in the search party yesterday, werent you? I knew he
was trying to keep something from me and my sense of
foreboding was increasing with his evasive manoeuvres.
Yes, I was.
So . . . did you nd him?
We did.
I clapped my hands and almost jumped with joy.
Really? Thats great!
Neel shrugged. Uh-huh.
I waited for him to elaborate but he didnt. I folded
my hands across my chest in a show of obstinacy.
We can be here till noon if you wish to drag this out,
I told him as I stared him down with dogged persistence.
A few seconds later, my perseverance won as I heard
him exhale deeply. Right. I had forgotten about your
. . . tenacity. I was hoping you rather heard this from
your Mom.
Heard what? What happened to Hari? Is he . . .
okay? I didnt want to say it. I didnt want to use that
word. Alive. Maybe that was the reason Neel was being
so evasive?
Mr Jain and your Mom are with him right now. They
are taking Hari to a hospital in Sector 24.
Is he badly hurt?
No, not physically hurt. Hes just in shock.
THE JUMP 109
In shock? Did an animal attack him?
We dont know yet, Mira. Hes . . . unresponsive. It
seems that he has turned catatonic.
But yesterday . . . he just . . . disappeared. I
couldnt wrap my head around it. If Hari had seen a
new breed of animal, then why would he climb the
fence and willingly follow it into the jungle? That
seemed to be the only explanation as the animal
couldnt clearly come inside. It also didnt seem like
him to leave me stranded there with a dangerous
animal nearby. He had always been so protective and
careful during our hikes.
But then if an animal had dragged him off into the
jungle, he should have suffered some form of physical
injury? It just didnt t.
Where did you nd him?
Three miles away from the waterfall. He was
unconscious but he looked unharmed . . . at least
physically.
After a few seconds of silence, he added, I know.
It is confusing . . . I guess well just have to be patient
till he recovers.
I mulled it over in my head. There were many
unanswered questions but in spite of those nagging
doubts, it felt as though a big weight had been lifted
off my chest. Hari was unharmed. He was probably
just in shock right now.
I looked at Neel. He was stroking his chin and was
lost in his own thoughts. I realized I owed Neel for
saving Haris life as well as my own. If it had been
left to me I would have been sprawled out on the trail
as meat for the wildlife, while Hari would have been
struggling for his life all day.
110 INFINITUDE
Hey, I never came around to it yesterday. Thanks
. . . for saving Haris life and for carrying me all that
way. Really . . . thanks.
Neel smiled softly. Anytime. Just dont venture
out on the trails for a few days. Then he arched up an
eyebrow. Umm . . . about that breakfast?
I grinned up at him. Sure. Lets go.
As we entered the kitchen we found it devoid of its
usual occupant. However, the table was already laid
out with the usual spread.
We didnt talk much while we ate, but I often felt
Neels eyes on me. Whenever I looked up, I caught
him looking away or diverting all his attention to the
food on his plate.
I was pretty busy with my own plate as well as I
had missed dinner. I wolfed down three stuffed buns
followed by a huge glass of juice while Neel had an
apple, two bananas, three sausages and a bowl of
sliced avocados. Maybe he was following one of those
special muscle-building diets? Not like he needed any
more building in that department. And not like I was
ogling at the musculature in question.
Dont you like bread? I nally asked while nishing
the last dregs of my juice.
Not really. But it seems life-threatening incidents
have really helped build your appetite for them.
I scowled at him. I happened to have missed dinner
last night and Im not a nitwit who nibbles through her
food just because shes sitting with someone.
His smile widened. He was clearly enjoying this.
Well, thank the fates for ravenous alpha girls.
I got up from the table and picked up another bun
just to spite him. Stomping out through the back door,
THE JUMP 111
I had almost reached the garden before he caught up
with me.
Hey, remember the personal bodyguard thing?
Your Mom wasnt kidding about that and . . . neither
am I.
I hazarded a peek at him. His eyes had a look which
turned my intestines to mush. A erce joy surged
through me but I immediately reined it in. It would be
sheer stupidity to nd any sort of deeper meaning in
this arrangement.
I sat down on the stone love seat in the garden and
scoffed at him. So does that mean you will be following
me everywhere until my Mom comes back? I had been
aiming at a bitingly sarcastic retort, but it came out
sounding more like a childish gripe.
Actually I plan to continue even after shes back,
he said as he sat down and turned towards me. He
was so close I could feel his cool breath on my cheeks.
Would you have a problem with that? he asked
softly and I was dumbstruck for a few seconds. All
I could manage was to gaze back at him probably
looking like a complete idiot. Huh? Great. Now I even
sounded like one.
I asked if you would mind having me around even
after your Mom came back? he repeated gently.
You mean like a friend? Better to sound daft than to
contemplate the tempting alternatives. It was attering
to imagine that he had fallen for me but the fact was
that he hardly knew me and I knew next to nothing
about him. Was it so easy to fall in love? Was this even
love? I had missed him when he had been away but
was that enough?
Neel shook his head. Being friends wouldve done
112 INFINITUDE
it for me if we were still in the rst grade. he said as
he placed his hand over mine.
No Myrah, I was hoping for something much more.
My heart stuttered and stopped at that moment.
The intensity of his look, his words, his touch, burned
right through me. Myrah. His name for me felt like a
warm loving embrace. Heat rushed to my cheeks and
my heart pounded with joy.
Why? I whispered, searching for some kind of
validation in his eyes but they sent out cryptic messages
and looked stormier than usual.
Why? Because of you, Myrah, he said simply.
This was no clich. This was truth staring at me
without any games, any pretences.
Ever since I rst saw you . . . every day I used to
watch you, the way you used to place your palm on the
tree, the way you used to look up at it in wonder, how
you stopped and took the time to . . . care, for nature,
for old books, for friends and people around you . . .
and then when I saw you on the hammock that day, I
couldnt believe my eyes.
Watch me every day? Wait . . . hammock? I rst
saw you in your room. When did you . . .? My voice
trailed off remembering the afternoon I had slept off
in the hammock. It was the day that I had had that
strange dream and felt the heat seep through my skin
and course through my veins. I sucked in a breath at
the realization that froze my entire body.
Neels proximity had saturated the air around us
with a familiar scent. And just like before it smelled of
the wild, of wood smoke and a little spice.
I wondered why I hadnt realized this earlier. I had
sensed him that day as well. Before I had even seen
THE JUMP 113
him, I had sensed him and felt him kissing me. For
however much I tried to deny it, it had been a kiss that
I had felt that afternoon. And it had been him.
Oh! My ngers instinctively reached up to touch
my lips.
His face lighted up. Seems like I need to refresh
your memory a bit.
He leaned in and paused, waiting for me.
Myrah. How could a simple thing like him saying
my name make me feel so special? Myrah. Out of all
the images that it conjured up in my mind, the most
distinct one was of my tree. The one I had christened
the Hope Tree when Id been about six-years-old.
The Hope Tree was around a hundred years old and
everybody in my sector said it could wither any day. But
laughing in the face of all its naysayers, the Hope Tree
had stood, year after year, with its roots tangled but
resolute, some exposed, others hidden. Every spring
these roots would soak in the darkness of the earth and
turn it into bright pink puffs of trailing clouds. Clouds
that smelled of cherries and hope.
Perhaps spring had arrived for me as well.
All my doubts melted away in that moment of clarity
and I looked fearlessly into Neels eyes. Maybe . . .
I cocked my head to one side and smiled at him,
. . . maybe just a little bit.
I felt him smile as his lips moved above mine, leaning
and lingering. Touching but not really. Not yet. His
lips were barely teasing mine but still the feathery
possibility of that touch made me quiver to my toes.
What sweet painful languor.
Then he exerted the gentlest of pressures and my
lips, pliable and willing, started moving along with his
114 INFINITUDE
in a diabolically slow rhythm. It was sweet and soft. We
kissed like that for a long time. The unquenchable re
that had ignited inside me completely overpowered me.
I couldnt get enough of him and I had never felt like this
before. All the clumsy fumbling attempts by the boys
back in Sector 51 were a thing of distant memory. Here
was the real thing. Stoked by his tenderness, I shifted
till I was sitting on his lap with my legs wrapped around
his midriff. Clutching the hair at the nape of his neck, I
bent my head down and crushed my lips to his. He let
me lead at rst but then as the ames licked away all
reasoning, his lips grew more urgent. His hands clutched
my waist tighter and each and every bre in my body
roared to that touch. I opened my mouth to breathe in
a lungful of air, but then his tongue grazed mine and
somehow, oxygen didnt seem so crucial anymore.
I never knew this feeling could be so consuming . . .
so . . . addictive. We swayed in a rhythm of our own,
leading and following until I heard someone exclaim
sharply. I immediately jerked away and hopped off
his lap only to see Maria standing a few feet away,
holding a tub of washed clothes. She was gaping at
us in shock. I ushed self-consciously at her reaction
though Neel seemed to be completely unaffected and
even wished her a pleasant morning. Maria smiled
back and returned his greeting, but her face remained
wary. Without completing whatever shed come to do,
she hurried back towards the house.
Neel turned to me and his smile melted away all my
self-consciousness into a slushy mush. For the next two
hours, we walked around the house, in the elds, in
the garden. We didnt kiss again, but it was as if our
bodies had developed a compulsive need to be linked
THE JUMP 115
to each other. Sometimes our ngers were entwined
and shoulders rubbed each other, sometimes our palms
grazed and our lips would irresistibility nd the others
ear, cheek and even hair. Sometimes it was just soft
smiles, crinkled eyes and a sense of peace that I had
never ever known before.
Neel asked me about my friends, my sector, my
father. I told him about my best friend Asha, described
the street we used to live on, the bridge Id never seen,
my solitary walks on early winter mornings, my tree in
the college backyard. Then I told him about my father.
That I had never known him. That I had lost him to an
accident when Id been just four-months-old. That it
was a part of my life I didnt like to talk about. I had
always hated the look of sympathy people gave me
when I told them about my single parentage. I detested
the aww that came with it and loathed the morbid
curiosity that followed.
Neel didnt give me any of that. He just clasped my
hand tighter and moved on.
We talked endlessly. My seemingly trivial and
common thoughts felt special when reected in his
eyes and I revelled in the attention he gave me. The
wonder he expressed at my commonplace life made me
feel as if I was a mystery he was slowly unravelling. I
felt it too. Even the most insignicant detail about him
felt so crucial. I asked him about his favourite books,
music, colour. Really sappy questions.
Brave New World, rock, black, he answered patiently
in monosyllables. He would rather be questioning me,
he insisted.
When I had nished describing the owers of my
tree back home and was getting ready to quiz him, Neel
116 INFINITUDE
mentioned he had to go visit the waterfall. He wanted
to survey the area again to nd any clues that might
have been missed yesterday. After twenty minutes of
incessant whining, I managed to convince him into
taking me along as well.
We set off around noon, following the trail at an easy
pace. We crossed the midway mark of the boulder and
looking at it I realized that even with everything that
had happened yesterday, I felt safe. Whether it was
because of Neel or the imposing nerve gun he carried,
I couldnt say.
About twenty minutes later, we reached the
waterfall. It looked undisturbed and unaffected in spite
of all that it had witnessed. I, on the other hand, felt all
my calmness from a minute ago evaporate. Standing
there transxed, I couldnt do much except watch Neel
as he looked around, surveying the whole area. Then
something caught my eye startling me out of my inertia.
It was a small wisp of red cloth stuck to a bush near
the fence. Neel was walking right around that spot and
yet he didnt reach out to inspect it. Maybe he thought
it wasnt important. I walked closer to take a look and
decide for myself.
It was a small piece of red fabric caught in a bush
at the base of the fence. I sucked in a breath. It was
from his shirt. From Haris shirt! I inspected the area
underneath the fence. The earth around the base was
of a richer colour as if a burrow had been dug there and
then covered up recently. I reached to pull the fabric
out but a hand clasped my wrist, stopping me.
What are you doing?! Neel shouted at me. Its an
electric fence!
Hey! Calm down. Cotton is not a conductor, you know.
THE JUMP 117
Neel grew very still. Cotton? he asked quietly. I felt
unnerved by his reaction and by the expression on his
face. His face had changed becoming cold and aloof.
Did you see the patch stuck on the fence? I asked
hesitantly, pointing my nger towards it.
He looked in the direction and then stretched
out his hand. I noticed how his ngers reached out
tentatively as if he was trying to feel something that
wasnt really there. His ngers brushed over the
dry crackled leaves snagged on the fence and when
they nally moved on the fabric, I saw his hands
pause and feel for its texture. A ash of surprise
crossed his face as he pulled the fabric free. I was
about to point out the freshly covered burrow as well,
when I heard something.
It was the same rustling sound . . . coming from
somewhere beyond the fence.
My whole body froze. My breath stuck in my throat, I
watched as Neels back stiffened and his head snapped
to a spot on our right. I followed his gaze. There was a
tall tree just beyond the fence. The leaves there moved
ever so slightly and my breath stopped.
Something that had taken Hari was right behind that
tree. Something that was so terrifying, it had turned
him catatonic.
Neel held up his morphe close to his mouth and
whispered something into it. Then he turned to me and
said softly, Myrah, you need to head straight back to
the house. Ill be climbing over the fence as soon as
theyve turned off the circuit. Okay?
Circuit? Head back to the house? What? No!
Neel, Im coming with you. I can . . .
Mira . . . please, he whispered urgently, losing
118 INFINITUDE
patience. There is no time. Just do as I say, okay? Go
back home.
But . . . His morphe gave one short beep. He had
been waiting for that signal because as soon as he
heard it, he climbed up the fence in one smooth motion
and landed on his feet on the other side. He righted his
nerve gun and after sparing me a quick glance, walked
quickly towards the tree.
As Neel disappeared behind the dense thicket, I
pictured myself back at the house, waiting for him to
come back. Waiting and wondering like yesterday on the
various terrible things that could have happened to him.
Arggh! No way was I going through that torture again.
I launched my butt in the air and tried to scramble
up the fence. Neel had made it look easy, but it took a
lot to actually do it right.
Once at the top, I swung my leg over and considered
jumping even though it was quite a height. However,
if I ever intended to catch up with Neel, I needed to
make up for all the lost time and so jump I must.
I jumped and landed on my feet but then immediately
toppled over trying to find my balance. My arms
skinned over the ground breaking my fall, but thanks
to all the mulch on the jungle oor it didnt hurt much.
I quickly scrabbled up on my feet and ran as fast as
I could. Seconds, minutes passed and I had just begun
to lose hope when I saw a glimpse of Neels white shirt.
I ran faster, trying to cover up the distance between us.
And thats when it happened.
If only I had known what turmoil a little misstep
would bring in my life.
If only. If only. If only. I would have been so so
careful. I would have never followed him. I would have
THE JUMP 119
gone back to the house and life would have gone on as
usual. Maybe we couldve even been together living our
lives blissfully ignorant of everything that happened.
But. None of that was ever going to happen now.
I was stuck here in a death trap.
The infection was searing through my body and my
brain, destroying my sanity. No rescue was coming for
me. I was completely on my own.
Life had a way of deciding things for you and it
seems mine had thought that dangling in a trap in the
middle of a jungle would do me some good.
But I was done with this self pity.
I am not going to die this slow, dry, painful death. I
call out again, louder this time.
Come out, come out, wherever you are.
VI I
THE RESCUE
Archived News Excerpt 17/10/2043: The planting
of hybrid plants to counter global warming has led
to a dramatic rise in oxygen levels over the last
few decades. While scientists are trying to cope
with the speed at which these invasive hybrids are
spreading, the rise in atmospheric oxygen has had a
signicant effect on land species. Jad Brow, renowned
biologist, has published a study detailing the adaptive
evolutionary changes found in two species in the
Amazonia Panthera onca and Crotalus horridus.
These two species have been discovered to have
developed folds in their nostrils. With the added smell
receptors, their sense of smell has become the best
amongst any of the land animals making them better
trackers and hunters.
Area IV, 27 December 2173
I wait and bide my time, tracking shadows on the
mulch below, catching the glimmers escaping through
the green web above. They look like sparkles from
a disco orb moving in slow motion. Eventually, the
sparkles start dimming and the air around me turns
grey. The darkness sucks up all the moisture like
a ravenous virus. I look down at the blood that has
already crusted on my wounded wrist. Scratching the
dark rust ecks away, I poke and itch at the gash till
it becomes a gaping wound again. A part of me does
that to spill more of my blood to draw in the new breeds
like sharks scenting a crimson tide. The other part just
wants to feel the pain. It helps to keep the darkness
away, to keep me sane.
The pitch black deepens. The jungle thrums and my
body trembles with its every beat. Eyes wide, I stare
into the darkness, tracking shapes made out of air and
shadows, every shift, every rustle, shooting the fear
deep in my marrow.
Throughout the long night, I am on the edge but as
the mist lightens, my eyes start wavering and I cant
help but drift away into the nudging waves. My body
is weary from having lurched through them all night.
Transcending a threshold, it nally gives up.
When I wake up, I am covered in sweat and my body
feels horribly stiff. I look around through my bleary
eyes. It is that time of the day when the evening hasnt
yet set in and the noon still lingers, reluctant to leave
like an overprotective mother fussing over her child.
And thats when it nally decides to come back.
Im not surprised to see it. The new breeds are a
tenacious lot. They never give up on their prey. But
I am surprised at its ability to sneak up on me again.
It stands on the same branch from which it had
attacked me yesterday. Its shimmering black hide
and its ferocious, aming eyes are completely focused
on mine.
The feral insanity behind them makes me shudder.
I shouldnt feel this scared. After all, I am the one who
has lured it here. But, I am afraid. In fact, I am terried.
Biting down on the back of my hand is the only thing
THE RESCUE 121
122 INFINITUDE
that keeps me from screaming. No. No. No. I want
to rethink this whole thing. I am not so sure of doing
this anymore. Then. It lunges for me. And there is no
turning back.
This time it doesnt miss reaching its target. Its talons
clamp onto the net and it latches on, its long canines
unlocking and snapping inches away from my face.
The net sways wildly and the world around me spins
like a xeppel on a downward spiral. I scramble inside
the net, which is both useless and agonizing. My ankle
is scalded by rope burns and my leg throbs.
And then just as suddenly, I am falling.
My body jolts as it hits the ground. The bindings of
the net burrow painfully into my back. But I know that
I dont have time to acknowledge the pain. I sit up and
ail my arms wildly, trying to nd the opening in the
net. A sharp slice of agony stings my arm and I realize
the beast has already marked me.
Desperate, I thrash inside the net oundering for an
escape. Suddenly, I am thrown back on the ground. It
feels like a tree has just been rammed into me. Then
all the air is sucked out of my lungs as an oppressive
weight crushes my chest. It is on top of me now and I
know I am nished.
I think it wants to savour this moment because it
doesnt bite immediately. Its muzzle touches my face
staking out its meal. Then it opens its jaw and rears its
head back. And at that moment, I succumb to it. My
body relaxes, tired of ghting off the inevitable.
Then it comes. The rst deafening explosion followed
by another. Maybe it is the roar of madness in my
head. I gasp for air because the weight on my chest has
increased to such an extent, it has become unbearable.
THE RESCUE 123
Then all conscious thought leaves me as a calming black
cloak shrouds my mind.
***
A harsh light seeped in through the cracks. I panicked
and tried to push it away. But then I realized my hands
were trapped and my fear suddenly surged into terror.
My eyes snapped open and I screamed. All the agony
of the last three days festering inside came out in that
scream. My voice dried up, but my chest still felt like
it was in a tight grip.
My breaths came in long ragged pulls and each drag
was an effort I was too drained to make. Then I felt
something on my lips. Water. Oh, dear fates. Water. I
clutched the hand offering it and gulped it down.
I drank for a long time. Eyes squeezed tight, I
relished the fullness it brought to my parched insides
and greedily sucked on every last drop.
The hand tried to pull away but I clutched it tighter.
More. My voice sounded scratchy and alien to my ears.
After some time, the voice said. A human voice. A
gentle voice.
I opened my eyes. Maybe I was not done with life
after all. Or maybe, life was not done with me.
A girl knelt beside me. She looked very young and
for a second, I thought she was just a mirage. There
was something so . . . ethereal about her. Her raven
black hair was piled on top of her head, a spike driven
through it to keep it in place. Her alabaster skin looked
bronzed like it had seen too much sun. She reminded
me of pixies from the retro fairy tales. But then the
pixies I had read about didnt dress in leather. I noticed
124 INFINITUDE
the distinctly unhealthy sheen on the leather of the
waistcoat she wore. Dirt or overuse? Probably both.
Tattered half pants patched up with different scraps
of cloth made up the rest of her outt.
Pixies also didnt carry nerve guns, one of which
was casually slung over her shoulder. She held it in
place with a broad leather strap but I could tell it was
an unfamiliar burden because of the way she kept
adjusting it. Her ngers dgeted as she kept shifting
the bite of the strap on her small narrow shoulders.
Who are you? This voice was not gentle. I turned
towards it. A boy stood far away on my left. Tall and
thin, his face was covered in a shaggy beard although
he couldnt be more than eighteen years old. His long
matted hair had been pulled back from his face and
tied behind his neck. He was dressed to match the girl.
A worn-out leather waistcoat and a pair of patched-
up pants covered his frame but even from this distance
I could make out his much sturdier build. He had broad
shoulders and robust muscles which looked tense
as they held the weight of a vintage rie. And there
was nothing even remotely uncertain about the way
he carried his weapon. Poised and ready, his ngers
seemed to be twitching to use it.
My mind was alert now and suspicions rushed to
crowd it. Who were these people? Did they live in this
sector? Their accent was somewhat similar to mine
although their English was broken and mixed up. But
the way they were armed and the clothes they were
wearing made me feel wary.
Not gonna ask you again. Who-are-you? His voice
got strained and edgy.
Mira, I told him quickly.
THE RESCUE 125
He gave an exasperated sigh. Who are you . . . Mira?
I live in the house . . . Casa . . . Casa Amarela? We
just moved here . . . I was running . . . then I got stuck
and the new breed . . . I paused as the violence of the
past few minutes assaulted my mind.
The girl spoke up, Jaggi, bas kar. For Gods sake,
shes just been attacked.
I stole a look at the remains of the net beside me. My
eyes travelled across to the prostrate form of the beast
next to it. It lay there motionless, but then something
on its body moved. Riveted, I followed the trail of liquid
slithering down its hide. A yellow viscous uid poured
out from its eye and snaked through the black matted
hide. When it reached its wet leathery snout, it dripped.
I saw the glutinous drop plop on the ground and the
contact released me from my trance. I scrambled to make
space between me and the ferocious beast. Dragging
myself away with my palms scraping the ground, I
moved as far as I could go, till my back hit a tree.
God! Its okay. Everythings okay, the girl reassured
me as she came towards me with her hands in the air.
The rie thudded on her back with each cautious step.
It is dead. Finished. Kaput. Corpsed out. She knelt
in front of me again and repeated her assurance in a
softer voice. Dont worry. Youre safe.
I looked into her eyes and was undone by the
kindness in them. Hot tears spilled out and heaving
sobs wracked my body. A beat later, I felt the warmth of
slender arms wrapping around me. Relieved, I melted
into the support being offered.
When my grief was nally spent, I pulled myself
away and tried to wipe the snot off my face. The girl
spoke again. Howbout some grub?
126 INFINITUDE
My stomach gnawed at the idea and I nodded
my head.
She took out a black strip from a ragged satchel
tied to her waist and gave it to me. Without so much
as giving it a second look, I put it in my mouth. It was
stiff and hard to work on. Salted meat.
I felt the insides of my cheeks pucker and ll with
saliva at the forgotten taste of salt. It was strange what
just a few days without food and water could do to your
body. It was even more incomprehensible what those
days could do to your mind.
Slow down, Mita. Dont need to get her stomach
worked up all quick, the boy named Jaggi said.
Mita rolled her eyes at him. The normalcy of her
gesture calmed me, but the meat didnt sit well in my
stomach. Already I could feel a wave of nausea rising
up my throat. The vomit followed before I could move,
or warn the girl.
Hey! she jerked away but I think I still managed
to splatter her pants. I clutched my stomach to stop
the vicious twisting of my intestines but the retches
kept convulsing my body till there was nothing left
inside of me. A cool hand brushed my forehead.
Even through the grime and sweat I could feel the
roughness of those calluses as they grazed my skin.
The boy was kneeling beside me with his palm on
my forehead.
Shes burnin up, he announced.
I watched as he tore a strip from the bottom of his
pants. Then he poured out some water on it from a leather
pouch and cleaned my face with that wet rag. I closed
my eyes as my insides slowly uncoiled and relaxed.
Drink a little bit.
THE RESCUE 127
He was holding out the bag for me. I took a few
cautious sips, wary of another bout of nausea.
Need to lug her to the site, I heard Mita say to Jaggi.
Nahin, Mita, he told her in a language I couldnt
really make out. But even I could detect the warning
in his voice.
Mita said something in a deant tone and I gured
Jaggi was not very keen to take me to this site she had
in mind.
Mita suddenly threw her hands in the air. Cant you
see shes one of us. Look at her mop!
Jaggi turned towards me and looked at my head. I
decided to interrupt this strange conversation.
If you could just take me back to Casa Amarela?
I asked softly. I saw them exchange a wary look but I
kept going. The people there . . . they will help me.
Jaggi scowled. Haan! They will help you. I caught
the mocking inection in his tone but didnt understand
the meaning behind it. Then he asked, Do you know
the native speech?
What? English?
Nahin. Hindi?
I shook my head in the negative.
My answer seemed to appease the boy because he
immediately started arguing with Mita in native. Was
this Hindi they were speaking? How had they managed
to learn Hindi so well? My teachers had told me people
across all sectors were required to learn English. Rebyt
had enforced that diktat to ensure better monitoring by
the security. These two must have really gone through
a lot of tutorials on their morphes to be able to speak
a second language so well . . . But then I noticed that
neither of them were wearing their morphes. I started
128 INFINITUDE
concentrating on what they were saying but they were
talking so fast that even if I had learnt Hindi I wouldnt
have been able to decipher a single word.
In between the conversation, I saw Mita gesture
once towards my ankle and then towards the net. After
staring at them for a few minutes, I gave up on trying
to gure out the nuances of their argument. My mind
wandered. To my Mom. Then Neel. Then it dwelt on
why none of them had come to rescue me. Was Mom still
in Sector 24? And Neel? Had he been hurt as well? What
were these strangers doing in the middle of the jungle
and why were they arguing about where to take me?
The sudden silence stopped the trail of questions
in my mind. I realized with rising alarm that Mita and
Jaggi had both walked off to a nearby tree and were
busy pulling down its enormous glossy leaves. I watched
as they cut down about twenty of them. Then Jaggi
pulled out a small knife from his pocket and started
cutting the leaves into long strips. I wondered what they
planned to do, but then I noticed Mita working through
two strips and weaving them together like a braid.
Ahh, I got it. They were making a rope.
I contemplated my options. These two strangers had
saved me from the beast. They gave me water, cleaned
up my face and now they were making a rope. They
could be escaped criminals or just plain psychotic, but
with the condition I was in, I couldnt run away from
them. And running was probably a far shot, I might not
even be able to stand up.
I sat there helpless with my back against the tree and
watched my saviours create awless bindings from the
jungle foliage. After some time, Jaggi straightened up
and started walking towards me. My heart hammered
THE RESCUE 129
in my chest as he got closer and almost sprinted away
from my body as he knelt down beside me. I waited
with baited breath as he took off his water bag and
handed it to me. Be easy with that, he said before
returning to his task.
The air in my lungs left with a big whoosh and my
shoulders slumped with relief. I raised the bag to my
mouth and sipped the water while watching the two
of them as they started binding the ropes together,
weaving a loosely held blanket of sorts.
The ropes were not for binding me then. They
planned to carry me. It looked like Mita had won the
argument after all.
The weaving took them quite some time and when it
was nally done Jaggi nished it off by tying the strips
on the edge of the blanket. Mita knelt next to me and
put a hand on my shoulder.
We gonna lug you, Mira. Okay?
I nodded before hazarding a question, Are you
taking me back to Casa Amarela?
Closing her eyes, she sighed deeply and shook her
head. No, too . . . dangerous.
She pointed to my ankle which was now swollen to
twice its size and had smelly pus oozing out of it. We
gotta get some green on that, okay?
Okay, I said, feeling relieved. These people couldnt
be that dangerous. Not if they were talking about
putting something green on my wound. Psychotic
people denitely didnt bother about stuff like that.
A cacophony of screeches broke through my thoughts
and I looked around. The jungle was coming alive for
another night and just the thought of the darkness made
me shiver. As I sipped more water, I became aware of
130 INFINITUDE
something else. A building pressure in my abdomen.
I hadnt passed anything from my bowels for the past
three days. Not surprising. With no food or water, my
body had nothing to process. But now with all the water
Id been drinking . . . the urge became too hard to ignore.
Maybe things were really looking up for me, considering
my body had decided to reclaim its normal functions.
Mita and Jaggi brought over the blanket close to
where I sat.
Ive got to pee, I blurted out when they were near me.
Momentarily stunned, they looked at each other and
then back at me.
Jaggi shrugged. So go.
Mita slapped his shoulder. Bewakoof, she cannot
move. Her foot!
Oh! Jaggis cheeks turned ruddy making me
wonder how old he really was. He ran a hand through
his shaggy beard and then scratched his head.
Mita squared her shoulders. Well help her.
Jaggi immediately started to step back but Mita
xed him with a single look. Her thin hands landed
on her hips and her eyes gave out a death glare. I
watched the obstinate bend of her chin and it didnt
surprise me when I heard a dejected voice proclaiming
surrender. That settled, she turned to me. You ever
peed standin?
Sorry?
You-ever-peed-standin? she repeated, dragging
her words out for me.
Err . . . no.
Well try today coz bending that swollen leg of yours
will be a lot less cheery. She waved at Jaggi. You
crank her up, Ill yank down her pants.
THE RESCUE 131
Before I could process anything, I found myself being
held up like a rag doll by a pair of strong hands. Mita
started tugging on my pants.
Close your eyes, she said with her head bent and
I didnt have any strength left in me to argue. I closed
my eyes.
Then I heard her irritated voice, Hey bhagwan. Not
you. Jaggi, bewakoof, you close your eyes!
I opened my eyes and saw her pulling down my
underclothes. Then clutching my clothes in her hands
she walked away and turned her head. I took that as
my cue but even though my bladder was bursting, I
was suddenly gripped with anxiety. I just couldnt let
go. I tried my best to shut down my mind while they
waited patiently. For a few seconds. Then a minute.
Jaggi spoke up from behind me. Finished?
I havent started, I replied quietly.
Hey bhagwan, I heard Mita muttering under
her breath.
Then I heard a humming. It was coming from
behind me.
It was Jaggi. He was humming a tune. The melody
started slow and then picked up. It was when he started
whistling to it that I felt the release.
Im done, I said quietly after a while, not wanting
to interrupt his whistling which would have been a lot
more enjoyable at a very different time, in a completely
different place.
Jaggi dragged me to a spot a few feet away and
placed me back on the jungle oor. Then he walked
away and stood with his back turned. Mita helped me
rearrange my clothes, when Jaggi spoke up, Hurry up.
The night is coming.
132 INFINITUDE
I looked up and found he was right. The sunlight
had gone and the mist was deepening. I felt my
shoulders being pulled up again. Jaggi was dragging
me backwards. I cleared my throat to ask the reason
when my body registered the change. The softness of
the jungle oor gave way to a sturdier matted surface.
I was on top of the blanket now.
Well scramble now, okay? Night in the jungle aint
much to gnat about, Mita informed me.
I didnt want to tell her that I knew exactly what
nights in the jungle could be like. Each sound, each
timber, each second, would forever be seared in
my mind.
They lifted me, Mita in the front and Jaggi at the
back. I hung between them on my makeshift hammock,
trying not to do more than just wince as each movement
caused agonizing tremors to shoot up from my ankle.
They started moving and on the rst step, I heard a soft
grunt. Guilt surged through me.
A girl as young as Mita having to lift my weight? She
might act ballsy but she was clearly still an adolescent.
The thought prodded at my conscience, but in spite of
my weight they both moved surprisingly fast. So fast
that staring at the whirling mosaic of trees above made
me dizzy.
My body became accustomed to the rocking motion
and to the painful quivers that came along with it. As
my body settled and adapted, I nally let it sink in.
I had been saved. Three nights of hell. Three nights
of living, rotting, festering hell and I had been saved.
I closed my eyes.
A mans deep voice boomed in my head. You realize
how risky this is?
THE RESCUE 133
Another male voice whispered, She was trapped
there for three days, they dont come for her. Seems
like she aint that important for them.
I told both of you to just let her be but you dont
listen, the rst man replied.
A girls voice cut in, She was attacked. We couldnt
just plonk her there and let her get ripped in front ous.
I recognized the voice. It was Mita.
Jeezus. Of. In front of us. Prepositions, Mita . . . and
please stop using plonks and skanks in place of real
words, the deeper voice chided.
I opened my eyes and shifted my head to look
around. Four pairs of eyes turned to look at me. Besides
Mita and Jaggi, there were two older men. They were
tall, with their heads shaved, well-muscled and well-
inked. I recognized the ink markings on their chest. I
had read about them. Tattoos, theyd called them.
One had an elongated plus sign on his chest and the
other had an evil looking eye. These men were dressed
differently. Whole fabric and not patches made up
their half pants. And apart from that they didnt have
anything else on. They were both bare-chested.
As I observed them, they stared right back at me.
The man with the mathematical tattoo did a head-to-toe
scan of my prostate form and then sneered. No muscle
on her. I give her a week.
The others immediately shifted their eyes to him.
The man with the evil eye tattoo squared his shoulders
and turned to face the other man.
Jaggi spoke up from behind him, Are you doubting
our skills?
They got a shrug in response which seemed to
further incense the situation.
134 INFINITUDE
Mita interrupted, wagging her thin nger at the
men. Come on. No ghtin yall. Then she turned to
the man with the evil eye tattoo. Shell be okay?
He nodded but didnt speak. Then he started
gesticulating with his right hand, making designs
and patterns in the air. The man with the plus tattoo
interpreted, Deepak says hell give her one med patch
for the infection but thats it. For the rest we have to
use the greens. He looked again at the man named
Deepak, who had started moving his hand again. Hes
asking you to mash up the salve for her wound and
hell x the potion for her fever.
Then Deepak took a deep breath and pointed to the
ceiling. The other man explained, I guess its up to the
man upstairs after that. Deepak nodded his agreement
and then cradling his left hand, he left the room.
Mita nodded and scurried away as well. Everybody
except Jaggi dispersed. I looked up at him but he just
turned his back to me and got busy with some work.
I pursed my lips and gazed up at the ceiling
wondering about the man above who seemed to have
my life in his hands.
Then I started inspecting my surroundings. The
room I was lying in was small and congested. The
walls were jagged and seemed to slant inwards. When
I peered at them closely, I realized they were made
of stone.
There was nothing else inside the room except for
the mattress on which I lay, a table lined up against the
wall and a strange-looking oor lamp. I shifted my head
and looked at the spot from where everyone else had
exited the room. That section of the wall was covered
by a large overhanging piece of uffy black cloth. I
THE RESCUE 135
followed the length of the cloth down to the ground but
as I reached its edge, my whole body jerked.
Eyes wide with shock, I stared at the large monstrous
head attached to the base of the cloth. It looked exactly
like the new breed that had attacked me.
But then as I continued to stare, the differences
become more apparent. The jaw was slack, the re in its
eyes sanded upon making them look glassy and . . . dead.
It zips the light.
I turned my head towards Jaggi. He nodded towards
the dead beast. Jagger skin. It stops the light from
escaping the cave.
A cave. So thats where we were.
Killed this jagger not fteen moons ago. Got another
notch on my roll today. I looked at Jaggi standing there
stroking his beard absent-mindedly. He was staring at
the dead beast, probably reminiscing about his kill. I was
having ashbacks of my own. I traced the slit on my wrist
thinking about the things that had happened to me. In
just three days my life had been turned upside down.
Then I noticed that my wrist felt unusually bare.
Wheres my morphe?!
Jaggis eyes swung back to me and narrowed as
they settled on my upheld wrist.
What? he asked quietly.
My morphe? My waistband . . . where is it?
Shh. Lower your voice, he snapped before turning
around again. He got busy with his work leaving me
to dread the worst. Maybe Id lost my morphe in the
jungle while I was trying to scramble away from the
new breed. Which meant it was lost forever. I thought
about all my books including some of those rare
editions that my Nani had passed down to me. Their
136 INFINITUDE
only backup was at home in Sector 51. And right now
Sector 51 seemed like an entire galaxy away.
I stared at Jaggis back. He probably thought it
shallow of me to be fretting about losing some gadget
when my very existence had been on the line. Especially
since, it was because of his shot that I was still sitting
here, breathing. I want to thank you . . . for saving my
life today, I managed to stutter out.
He didnt turn around but after a moment muttered,
Mita stoned your morf thing in the jungle when we
were comin back.
What? Stoned my morphe? Why?
So the Erons cant track us.
What cant track us?
Before I could get an answer, Mita charged in.
Balancing a small clay bowl in her hands, she came and
sat cross-legged on the oor, right next to my ankle.
Now this wont hurt but it will sting a zit bit. With that
warning, she scooped out some green goop from inside
the bowl and slathered it on my wound. I waited for
a fresh stab of pain to hit me but all I felt was a mild
burn. A few seconds later, a nasty itching started and
I felt like tearing out that patch of my skin.
Is the itching normal? I asked through gritted teeth.
Just means its slogging to get the fever out of your
bulk, Mita replied and then shifted her attention to the
wound on my wrist. What were you tryin to do when
you hacked your wrist? Slay yourself?
Umm . . . not exactly. More like trying to get the
beast to attack me.
So you were tryin to slay yourself.
No, I was actually hoping the beast would claw
through the net, so I could escape.
THE RESCUE 137
Mitas hand stilled and she just looked at me. Then
she scraped her hand on the edge of the bowl and got
up without saying a word. Before leaving I heard her
mumble to Jaggi, You were right. Shoulda left the mutt
and brought home the jagger.
I closed my eyes and tried not to think about the fact
that Jaggi had wanted to leave me behind in the jungle.
And he must have known . . . wounded and broken, I
would not have survived the night. Maybe hed killed
the beast just to get another notch in his tally? And
now, even Mita regretted her decision.
How could I explain to them the desperation I had felt
when I was trapped in that net? How could I describe
the mental and physical torture I went through? How
could I explain that I had indeed wanted to die but now
felt too ashamed to admit it?
Something ickered near my eyes. I snapped them
open and realized it was just Jaggi. He was kneeling
beside me, his nger raised above my cheek.
Easy, I just . . . He lowered his nger and nished
wiping off the tears that had unknowingly spilled
out of my eyes. Then he looked at me and I was
surprised at the change I saw in his face. He looked
younger and . . . so defenceless. Mita doesnt keep
anything in her heart. Lifes been tough for her. She
had to be tough for it too. She doesnt really mean
anything by it.
I nodded and stared at the ceiling trying my best to
hold back a fresh deluge at this unexpected gesture.
Jaggi got up and walked away but before leaving, he
instructed, Eat slow but nish it. It will ll you up for
the night.
I lifted myself on my elbows and found a big bowl of
138 INFINITUDE
something that looked like a tropical fruit right beside
me. With the nausea long gone, my body was raging
with hunger. And fruit seemed perfect. I put a small
piece in my mouth and a sigh escaped me. It had a
thick stringy texture, but it still felt like a mouthful of
bliss. I chewed on each piece thoroughly, enjoying
the sensation of real food in my mouth. I looked at the
table on which its strange hairy peels lay and wondered
about the person whod been bent over them a few
minutes ago. Out in the jungle, he had seemed older
and harsher but then, when he had spoken about Mita,
his face had looked so vulnerable.
As I swallowed the last morsel, the two older men
walked into the cave. The one called Deepak stopped
at a distance while the other one knelt next to me.
Whats your name? he asked.
I met his gaze. Mira.
He nodded and pulled out a med patch from his
pocket. Once he had stuck that on my arm, he pointed
to my forehead. Whats that for?
I raised my ngers and felt the frayed edges of the
patch Neel had stuck earlier. Was it just three days ago?
It seemed like ages had passed since then.
Its an old wound. I fell down . . . before.
He snorted. Arent you the lucky one?
I xed my eyes on the bowl between my hands.
Whats yours? I asked him.
What?
I looked up at his puzzled face and elaborated.
Whats your name?
The furrows between his eyes cleared. Kamal . . .
and that there is Deepak.
THE RESCUE 139
I glanced at Deepak. He was still standing at a
distance hearing our conversation and cradling his
hand. A med patch similar to mine was stuck on it. As
I looked at him, I realized that he looked a lot younger
than Kamal.
Your son?
Kamal looked at me and I watched with alarm as
his cheeks went blotchy. Why? Just because Im bald,
you think Im his father?
I was taken back by his anger. I . . . I didnt mean
anything by it. I . . . I just . . .
Yeah save it. So, heres the thing. The meat you ate
in the jungle and the fruit right now was all from Jaggis
ration. Food doesnt come easy around here. Your ankle
is not broken, just sprained and your fever will come
down tomorrow, so dont expect to be pampered. Sick
or not, youll work for your own food.
Then he got up and they both left the room. When I
was alone, I let out the breath I had been holding and
sat back against the wall. How long did they expect me
to stay if they wanted me to work? And why did they
want me to stay if they hated me so much? My eyes
started getting heavy and my thoughts blended into
each other. I realized that the med patch was starting
to work just as I slid into a dreamless drugged sleep.
VI I I
THE REVELATI ON
Archived News Excerpt 13/07/2030: Dr Thi Luiz,
head of the new sciences department at Rebyt Inc
has published a study indicating the emergence of a
set of children more highly evolved than the average
human. He calls them Erons, short for Altero Hominis,
meaning the next generation of man. With an expanded
consciousness, heightened sensory awareness and
stronger intuitive powers, the Erons are often diagnosed
as having extreme and chronic ADD/ADHD. Dr Luiz
says the Erons appear hyper-wired because of their
need to continually challenge themselves. He warns
that if these children are not given the stimuli suitable
to their level they may have problems with rage,
violence and even psychosis.
The Amazonia, 28 January 2173
An incessant nudging shook me out of my slumber. I
opened my eyes in alarm only to nd Mita sitting right
next to me, reapplying the salve on my wrist. When I
asked her for the time, she simply said, Suns up, and
then moved over to my ankle.
When she was done, she cleaned her hands on a
scrap of cloth and brought over a steaming bowl from
the table. Got some broth for you.
Oh, thank you! I sat up as fast as I could, feeling
really grateful for the much needed breakfast. Thick
with chunks of meat and chopped veggies, the broth was
wholesome and lling. Mita sat cross-legged in front of
me and watched me eat, her chin resting on her hands.
Usually I would have been embarrassed by such
a close examination, but I was much too involved in
lapping up the broth. It was the rst cooked meal I had
had in the past four days.
When I had scraped off the last drop from bowl with
my ngers, Mita spoke up, Best you go out and put up
some show of work. Kamal is buzzed at you. Did you
bicker with him last night?
Bicker? No. I just asked him about Deepak and he
got really angry.
She stilled. Asked him about Deepak? Whatxactly
did you say?
Well, I just questioned if Deepak was his son and
he got . . . I broke off as I saw Mita doubling up on
the oor. Startled, I propped myself up on my hands
and tried to reach her but then I caught a glimpse of
her face. Her lips were clamped shut and her eyes
were closed but her shoulders . . . they were shaking.
Not being able to contain it any more, she burst out
laughing. I sat back in relief, not feeling amused at the
scare she gave me.
You . . . you asked him . . . God! She laughed for
long irritating minutes. I decided to ignore her and
braved myself into standing up instead.
I raised myself up on my hands again and bending
my left knee, I hoisted the rest of my body on that foot.
It stung a little bit, but at least it made Mita sober down.
She held my elbow and tried to help me up. When
I was standing on my feet, I was actually surprised the
THE REVELATION 141
142 INFINITUDE
pain wasnt worse. Whatever greens and meds they
had given me, it seemed to have worked wonders.
Mita held one of my hands and as we walked out of the
cave, she whispered in my ear, Kamal and Deepak?
Theyre brothers.
I raised my eyebrows at this bit of information as
I ducked under the hide and stepped outside; only it
was not as much outside as another cave. This one was
a lot bigger than the one I had slept in, with a much
higher roof. It had daylight streaming in from a narrow
opening further down. There were two mattresses lined
up next to one wall and another two on the adjacent
side. The rest of the space was occupied by rough
wooden shelves. I walked across to them, looking at the
assortment of tools kept in one of the shelves. Another
one had bowls, pots, pans and spoons. A lean strip of
dry meat hung in one shelf along with two of the hairy
fruits I had eaten yesterday. The stock of food seemed
meagre for feeding ve people. No wonder Kamal was
so upset about me eating from their share yesterday.
I turned around and it was then that I saw it! There
was a big hook stuck in the roof of the cave and a long
beam of wood suspended from it. And tied to that beam
was a male human body. My eyes parted wider as
they moved down the spread-eagled arms to the head
slouched low over a bloody chest. His whole body was
limp and lifeless.
My whole world stopped and I stood there paralyzed,
unable to breathe, move, or even blink. Even though
I couldnt see the face, there wasnt a single doubt in
my mind. It was him!
Neel! My body ran to him before my mind could
even follow. Darkness shrouded him but I could still
THE REVELATION 143
see what had become of him. His chest was crusted
with a coat of grime and blood. A cry escaped my
lips as I got closer and saw his fingers. His long
beautiful ngers stuck out at odd angles. They looked
completely broken.
My hands quivered over his ruined, broken body,
trying somehow to undo the pain, the suffering.
Neel Neel Neel! He didnt even stir at the sound
of my voice, but at least I could feel him breathing. I
heard the raspy sound straining out from his chest and I
cringed at the pain it inicted on me. My hands fumbled
with the ropes which constrained him, but then strong
arms snaked across my chest and pulled me back. I
fought, clawing my nails into the arms which dared to
take me away from Neel.
I screamed in rage, my fury aching to burn whoever
did this to him. I wanted so desperately to reach him,
undo his binds, but I was cornered. The steely arms
enclosed me and it felt like I was back in the trap.
Stuck, conned and imprisoned. Again. I felt my body
shaking, a strange keening sound started ringing in
my ears and for the second time in my life, my mind
slipped away into a black hole.
When I came around again, I was back on my
mattress and Jaggi was there with me. He was sitting
on the oor and busy cleaning his nerve gun. He hadnt
realized I was awake and I didnt want him to know
just as yet. I needed time to think about Neel and what
these people had done to him. The thought of Neels
tortured body broke my heart and boiled my blood with
fury. What was wrong with these people? Why would
they do such a thing? Then I remembered something I
had overheard the rst time, in this very cave.
144 INFINITUDE
Jaggi had said something about nobody coming for
me for three days. How had he known that I had been
stuck in the trap for three days? I had never mentioned it
to them! Had they been watching me rot there the whole
time? A voice broke through the turmoil in my head.
You want to know about him, or you be dozing
some more?
The lazy drawl in his voice snapped something
inside me. I ipped my eyes open and sat up. Directing
all the rage bubbling inside me, I looked straight at him.
You dont scare me. You disgust me. Go ahead and kill
me with that gun, or torture me like you did him. You
guys are nothing but a bunch of sadist creeps.
He didnt respond. Not the slightest change in his
expression. Instead he just turned his eyes back to his
gun and continued cleaning it. I sat there spewing
venom and thinking about escape. Running to the
house and getting help seemed to be the best option I
had. I might get lost in the jungle and I might encounter
new breeds but those were the risks Id have to take.
It is a maze out there. Youd never make it, Jaggi
said without looking up and I was startled at his
intuition. After a few seconds, he put his gun down
and nodded his head towards the cave outside. What
do you know about him?
I pursed my lips and squared my shoulders, Enough.
He shook his head. Not enough. Its never enough.
Theres always something they hide. Like this one did.
Do you know hes crippled Deepak? Cant use his right
hand any more. We tried everything. Greens, patches
but nothing works. That one, he said pointing outside.
He has something in his ngers. We didnt even realize
what hed done till Deepak tried to lift his hand. He just
THE REVELATION 145
touched his wrist like that. He pinches his ngers in
the air and then took in a deep shuddering sigh.
I know he was trying to check his temper then
because his cheeks went ruddy and his ears visibly
heated up. You know nothing about him. About them.
They are the Erons. They are the sadists. They did this
to us, he waved around at the cave, the nerve gun, his
tattered pants. They took everything away from us.
Our families, our homes, our lives. They disgust me and
you, with your whiny weak mind . . . You disgust me.
His face twisted into a horrible sneer as he said that
last line. I pushed myself back against the stone wall
behind me and turned my head down, but nothing gave
me shelter from the impact of the loathing directed at
me. It pierced straight through me.
When he got up and left, I broke down. Nobody
had ever looked at me with such pure hate and that
along with the image of Neels broken body and the
ordeal of the last four days was all just too much for
me to handle. I sobbed uncontrollably for a long time
till I felt a small hand clasping my shoulder. Mita. Her
strength centred me.
After a few minutes, I wiped my tears and drank
water from the leather bag she offered. Idle tears
wouldnt get me anything except make me feel
helpless.
We sat in silence for a few minutes till I had to ask
her. What has Neel . . . the boy outside . . . why did they
beat him up so badly, what harm has he done to you all?
Mita squirmed uncomfortably, but then answered
with a shrug, He crippled Deepak.
I was surprised at her nonchalance, but then I looked
at her and thought about all that she had done for me.
146 INFINITUDE
Mita was the one who convinced Jaggi to bring me
here rather than abandon me in the jungle. Mita was
the one who defended me and rubbed salve on my
wounds. Mita, I felt, would understand.
I held her hands and spoke to her earnestly. But
that must have been to protect himself, Mita. He knows
this self-defence technique . . . one of his friends told
me about it. Neel would never use it unless he was
threatened. If you only knew him, youd realize . . .
hes not violent at all. Hes just . . . a boy.
She looked at me with a strange mix of anger and
pity in her eyes. Then she snatched her hands away
from me. Hes not just a boy, Mira. Hes an Eron. You
dont know a blip about him . . . or them.
What Eron? What them? What do you mean for
fates sake?
Mita looked deep in my eyes, You really dont
know, do you?
I looked at her with rising anger and frustration. Mita
stretched out her ngers to graze my hand and started
stroking my skin as if she were petting an animal.
The rst time I spotted you, I knew you werent from
the jungle. Your skin was light, untouched by the sun,
your dress was different, your hair so prim, so long. Just
one look at your hair and I knew. I told Jaggi when
we watched you that rst day. You looked jolted and
I wanted to help you, but Jaggi being Jaggi, he dont
listen much to what others say. He said he couldnt be
sure, so we came back, told Kamal and Deepak, but
then they told us that theyd caught a little something
of their own. Mita nodded towards the cave outside.
Him. Its the rst time weve caught one of them. So
you faded out. Then the Eron crippled Deepak and
THE REVELATION 147
Kamal lost his mind. But I never forgot about you. I kept
yapping at them about going back. On the third day,
Jaggi nodded and it was Gods will you see, because
just as we were close, we heard the blasted jagger
roaring. If theres anybody that Jaggi hates more than
the Erons, its the new breeds.
Mita looked up at me for a response and I asked her
the only question I had in my mind.
What . . . who are the Erons?
Before I tell you that, you gotta tell me all about you.
I looked at her and she said, Start from the day you
were born.
I told her everything. About my childhood, my life
back in Sector 51, my Mom, my best friend, my college,
then about Moms transfer, David Jain, the institute.
Then I told her about Neel, Hari and his disappearance
and going on the jungle trail trying to nd his attacker.
Surprisingly, my life story didnt take long and yet
when I nished, I felt my throat parch up. I reached for
the water bag and took a big gulp from it. Your turn,
I told her, wiping my face with the back of my palm.
She ddled with a ring on her nger, loosening it
so she could turn it around and started her story in her
strange mixed-up English.
Jaggi and I, we were born in a sector, but we had
no institute like yours, we just got machines in ours.
Lots and lots of grubby warehouses crammed up with
those clanky, ugly machines. We got no college like you
or any best friends for playin. We got rationed food,
lived in blip shacks next to the warehouses and slept
in the dark but . . . we were together, Papa, Mama,
Jaggi and I.
Jaggi keeps the timeround here so I reckon it
148 INFINITUDE
was six years before. Six festering years before they
snatched em from us. See, my Papa and his friend go
out for a piss in the dark one night and thats when
they spottedem gone. All ofem blue plastic men,
guarding the warehouses, the boundaries, everybody,
just whoosh! Disappeared! All at once.
They gured somethin dirty was up. They hollered
at everyone and asked em to pack up. Some came,
some ignored him and zonked off again. We mounted
the walls and dashed into the jungle. We were a
bummed lot, but that night . . . we never stopped. Ran
through the night, all of us did and it was near dawn
when we heard the booms. Even from so far, it made my
ears sting. My Mama, she covered my eyes so I dont
see the re, but my nose was ranked up with the smell.
It was sharp and bitter. Burning meat and old machine
oil. As long as I live, Ill never forget that smell. Then
we kept movin deeper into the jungle, for days, weeks,
who knows. Families lagged behind with festering
infections, hankering babies, battered oldies. One day,
we got our rst look at a new breed. My Papa and other
men from our pack nished it, but then, another gang of
new breeds latched onto our scent. They are a cunnin
lot, those new breeds. They followed and hunted us
down. Then people started runnin away from the pack,
thinking they could outsmart the critters, makeem lose
their scent. Dont know if they made it, but with fewer
men, grub became harder to nd. Jaggi and I went to
hunt down some squirrels one day. When we came
back to the camp, everybody was gone. We didnt nd
any bodies but there was blood splattered everywhere.
We never knew if it was em new breeds or the Erons.
Jaggi and I, we snagged the tools, some clothes and
THE REVELATION 149
then ran. We slept on trees, fed off rats and beasties.
One day, Kamal and Deepak spotted one of our traps.
They waited for us by it and when they looked at our
scraggly lot, they brought us to their home. Weve been
livin here ever since.
She stopped and adjusted the ring back on her
nger. I looked at it. It was just a simple unassuming
metal ring and yet there was nothing simple, nothing
artless about the struggle behind it. I reached out and
brushed the cool metal with my ngertip.
Its beautiful . . . its strong, I told her and by the
look she gave me, I know she realized I was talking
about just the ring. We heard someone walk in and
immediately snapped our heads around to see Kamal.
He stood uncertainly at the opening staring at our
clasped hands. Mita got up with a jerk and left without
saying another word.
I looked at Kamal who now had his eyes xed on
the roof of the cave. I was beginning to understand
their hatred of me. In the face of all they had gone
through, my three days of being trapped, crying over
Neel, who they thought was somehow related to the
security people or the Erons, all this would seem so
insubstantial to them. So whiny, so weak.
Jaggis words stung me, but I knew I had to somehow
get across to these people. I had to tell them that Neel
was not like those security people who had destroyed
their lives. I pictured his broken body hanging outside,
rasping with every breath.
I had to help him.
Im sorry, I said to Kamal and his eyes turned to me.
For what? For hugging the enemy, or for lashing
out at Jaggi?
150 INFINITUDE
I . . . I didnt mean those things. Im sorry, I was
just upset.
He kept looking at me as if he wanted something
more, but I had nothing else to say. What else could I
say to make this better?
Finally he spoke, It is not your fault. You didnt
know any better. He tricked you like he tricked us.
You didnt know he was an Eron?
Why do you all keep calling him Eron? His name
is Neel!
Kamal shook his head. Mita still hasnt told you?
She told me about how they escaped and survived.
She thinks Neel is related to the security people in
some way, but really, hes not! Hes just completing
a research study here with his friends. Hes not who
you think he is!
Kamal took a step towards me and shouted, He is
exactly who we think he is!
I was taken aback by his intensity, but Kamal wasnt
nished, Hes one of them! Them . . . who put us in
sectors, in cages, making us ip out about the Radres.
Who slogged us like slaves, studied us like guinea pigs
and then zapped us like vermin. People called them
the new breed of humans, smarter and stronger, but
when they nally got to know the truth it was too late.
They were the Erons and they were going to be the
end of all of us!
I was stunned into silence.
A new breed of humans? What in the world was he
talking about?
What do you mean new breed? Like the beasts
out there?
Yes, but the Erons . . . theyre the worst of the
THE REVELATION 151
lot. They snuck up on us gradually. They are taller,
stronger, live longer, but apart from being almost
hairless, there is no other apparent physical difference
between them and us. No one had any way of knowing
how dangerous they were.
Almost hairless? How is that not an apparent
difference? Then I remembered the faces of Firdaus,
Soni, Anil and even Neel. They all had sparse eyebrows,
shaved heads and an obsession with skullcaps. They
were not obviously divergent, not even suspicious
unless someone had their attention drawn to it. But
wait . . . a new breed of humans? Surely Kamal was
mistaken. How was that even possible?
But how did they suddenly evolve? Doesnt
something like this take, like a million centuries?
They evolved because of the same thing that created
the new breed animals and plants. We are responsible
for their rapid evolution. Over centuries, we changed
the way our planet worked. We built the mines which
invaded the Earth, we planted the farms that ate up
the natural forests, machines that scraped the ocean
oors and dams that altered river ows. Then, in the
last century we woke up and started doing good, using
solar, wind, nuclear energies, reforesting the barren
land by planting hybrid super trees. All this brought
about a sudden monumental increase in oxygen levels.
I vaguely remembered reading about the hybrid
trees in the archived news articles. Super trees which
produced hundred times more oxygen than normal.
But that shouldve been good? I said, still confused
by all this information.
It was, but the rules by which the ecosystem worked
had not changed. In the history of the planet, changes
152 INFINITUDE
in the amount of energy available in the biosphere have
always resulted in evolutionary leaps. Think back.
Now all Id ever learnt in the History classes at
school was about what had happened during the
viral outbreaks, the nuclear attacks and the details
of the mayhem that had ensued after. And the only
information I had about the world before had either
been gathered from those supercial study trips through
12hk or by my own initiative of digging through retro
movies and archives.
So, forget the planet, I didnt even know much about
the people that had lived on it before the outbreak. But
not wanting to cramp Kamals speech, I went along
with it. I pinched my nose and narrowed my eyes, my
mind in a tizzy with all that it was taking in. Evolved
humans? Neel?
Kamal didnt appear to care much about what I
was thinking and continued in an unstoppable ow
of his own.
The last two jumps in the atmospheric oxygen had
resulted in the advent of complex cells and later, in the
creation of large animals. This third jump, brought about
by humans themselves, hastened their own evolutionary
cycle. The only problem was that this leap wasnt taken
by humans alone, we also got those monstrous new
breeds as part of the package. You see, the Darwinian
train ran its course again, only this time . . . it was an
express. Kamals eyes had an insane glow in them as he
brought his face close to mine and whispered, Hunters
became predators, feeders became scavengers and the
jungle turned into the wild unknown.
But how did we end up in sectors? Were these new
breeds responsible for the viral attacks, the Radres?
THE REVELATION 153
His face registered disappointment at the practicality
of my question. He gazed at me for a few seconds,
searching my face. Probably looking for some sign of
awe at the scientic theory he just elaborated. After a
few seconds, he gave up.
Erons have existed since the last century but they
were not really aware of their differentiation from us.
The gene pool is not a dormant entity. Every generation
is smarter because of the evolving nature of the genes
they inherit. Thats what the scientists and psychologists
thought initially. But then they started noticing the
widening disparities, the abnormally high IQs, the
eidetic memory, the superior physical strength, the higher
life expectancy. In every aspect, they were better than
us. The scientist who rst published the nding called
them the Altero Hominis the Next Generation of Man.
I gawked at the possibilities that Kamal was bringing
up, the prospect of them being all around us.
The star of his research group was a seven-year-old
boy named Lek Singh. They called him the smartest
boy in the world. But after the study got published,
people didnt see him as a star. What we humans dont
understand, we desecrate. So, people squashed him,
labelled him a freak and the Altero Hominis became the
aberrations, the Erons. The government captured most of
the Erons, subjecting them to endless experiments, many
of them cruel and harsh. With the help of the scientist,
Lek along with some of the other kids went off the radar
but he never stilled. He decided to beat the humans at
their own game. As he grew up, he started bringing his
kind together. He founded a technology company when
he was just 17. With their superior mental and physical
abilities, the Erons had no problems getting into top
154 INFINITUDE
positions in companies, judiciaries and governments.
They helped each other out, passing laws, gathering
funds for pushing Leks company, which diversied and
became a mammoth body. In the beginning, the superior
technology that his company brought into various
industries silenced the dissenting voices and later, the
viral outbreaks he engineered, wiped out any stronghold
that we humans ever had. His company was called . . .
. . . Rebyt. I was too stunned by his story to say
much else.
Kamal gave me a wry smile. Spot on. From then on,
it was easy for them. Rebyt took control over the world
through its miraculous vaccine and Lek did to us what
years ago we had done to him, caging us in sectors
with the threat of Radres, using some of us as guinea
pigs. Each of these sectors had different objectives.
There were sectors for manufacturing, for technology,
for farming and people were segregated across them
based on their skills. The resources given to a sector
and the treatment meted out to its inhabitants differed
according to how important that skill was to Rebyt. The
scientists, the technology specialists, were all kept in a
carefully maintained cocoon of luxury while the worker
bees were often left to fend for themselves. Even the
security people Rebyt had put up as guards were all
Erons, all of them intent on slogging their slaves until
they didnt need them anymore.
Guinea pigs? Slaves? I had never heard anything
about any of this. But then all the books, articles, even
the movies Id watched, had always been approved and
probably doctored by Rebyt. Fact or ction, I had no
way of discerning the truth. Everything he was saying
sounded plausible, but to believe in it would be to slot
THE REVELATION 155
Neel as the enemy and . . . I was not ready for that. I held
on to my gments of doubt. How do you know all this?
The scientist who published the study? He was
my father. We lived in Sector 24 which was one of
the last sectors to be destroyed. I sucked in a breath
at this news. What about Mom? Kamal didnt notice
and carried on, Our sector had the Rebyt Technology
Institute. Software developers, research scientists,
network architects, they exploited everything they
could from all of us till they didnt need us anymore.
My father was the head there. Lek walked into his
ofce one day and told him he was there to repay his
debt. All those years ago, my father had helped him
go underground and now he was setting him and
his family free. Kamal thumped his st into the hard
ground, not even wincing at the impact.
Free? Left in the middle of the jungle like abandoned
domesticated pets! Fresh meat for the new breeds! At
least I managed to warn Deepak before they escorted
us off into the jungle.
I couldnt process his anger or much of what he had
just said because I was still stuck on something he had
said earlier. Have all the sectors been destroyed? When
did it happen?
Kamal looked at me and his eyes were lled with a
sorrow so stark that I already knew the answer to my
question. Why were you sent here? he asked.
My Mom . . . she . . . she got an offer from Mr
Jain. Shes working on a project . . . I trailed off as all
the links suddenly connect in my mind. David Jain
suddenly inviting my Mom for a job at the institute, our
travel papers getting processed without a hitch, Neel
telling me about the criticality of my Moms research.
156 INFINITUDE
The unforgettable citric sweetness of the berries.
The proclaimed givers of immortality, those berries
had certainly lengthened our lives in a way, preventing
us from being destroyed along with my sector . . .
my friends.
I didnt say anything to Kamal. I was not sure about
who to trust anymore.
Kamal narrowed his eyes at me. That must be one
important project your mothers working on. I didnt
reply and he didnt push it. My mind was swamped by
the thoughts of my tree, my classmates, teachers and . . .
Asha. Were they all gone forever? Images of raging
walls of re and searing waves of heat singed my mind.
Asha, with her jokes and idiosyncrasies, so unaware
of the cunning world that lay right behind the perimeters.
It sickened me to think about her, about the others.
So many lives destroyed. Were we the only humans
left in the world or were there others like us? Pockets
of last-minute escapees and unworthy survivors?
Because thats exactly what I felt like, unworthy and
undeserving of this chance that life had given me.
I knew I was there only because of my Mom. A
sudden terror seized me. What of my Mom? Would they
discard her as well when she nished her research?
I realized I already knew the answer. I steeled my
mind and stiffened my spine.
Knowing what I had to do settled me in a way.
Kamal noticed the change in my body language.
What is it? he asked.
Even though I didnt know how I was going to do
it, the conviction I felt was stronger than any other
emotion I had ever felt.
I have to rescue my Mom.
I X
THE ERONS
Archived News Excerpt 11/02/2031: Palaeontologists
say that at one time, modern humans may have
shared the Earth with as many as three other closely
related species, Neanderthals, Homo Erectus and the
Dwarf Hominids. Will the evolutionary theory create
conditions in the future where spin-off species might
develop again? Dr Paz, the author of the bestseller
Them and Us, spoke to us about the possibility of Homo
Sapiens turning into an endangered species in the near
future and the genetic modications that could arise
because of that.
The Amazonia, 28 December 2173
I worked outside all morning and found that my leg
did a lot better with the exercise. For the rst hour, I
watched Mita as she skinned a small mutated rodent.
Its teeth were spiked and it had talons instead of claws.
Mita informed me that even though a lot of the old
wildlife had mutated, most were still not clever enough
to evade traps.
I tried not heave up my breakfast as I watched her
slice its skin and scoop out all its innards in a bowl.
When she asked me chop them into small pieces, I
resolved to swallow down my distaste. They couldnt
exactly afford to have a lab here which cultured their
158 INFINITUDE
meat. This was as good as it got for them. And now,
also for me.
Around noon I saw Jaggi, Kamal and Deepak head
off on different paths into the jungle armed with axes
and guns. I questioned Mita about it.
Theyre gonna check all the traps and bring in the
kill. Noon is the quietest time in the jungle, too hot for
the critters to do much else, she said.
They dont have any morphes. How will they call
each other if they need help?
Its something Deepak taught us. Apart from sign
language, he knows another kind of communication
made up of dots and dashes. They chop on the trees
in different beats to make up words and communicate
important information if required. Its freaky but very
safe. No one else can make out the difference unless
they know the code.
Is it the Morse code?
Mita went very still and her eyes turned hard. How
do you know about it?
My grandmother taught me. I saw it in a retro movie
once and insisted on learning it, I told her truthfully.
The answer confused her and I couldnt understand
why until I realized Mita didnt know anything about
movies. So for the next few minutes, I tried to describe
it to her and I think I was quite successful because my
explanation seemed to satisfy her.
Mita lowered her head and continued her work.
And I thought that was the end of it but then a few
minutes later, she snapped her head up again. You
best stay put inside the line of those trees there, she
pointed to the four thick-trunked trees surrounding
the mouth of the cave. Beyond it, we rigged the whole
place with traps. So if you wander off too far, you might
get stabbed by spears, or fall in pits full of spiked wood,
or get caught in the rope traps of the kind in which
you nearly died.
My face paled at the memory. I also managed to
perceive the veiled warning in her tone and realized
she still didnt trust me. I knew too much now and
Mita thought Id make a run for it, putting them all
in danger.
Just as I nished chopping the meat, Jaggi dumped
four more rodents near our board. I heard Kamal
shufing through the pots and pans inside the cave.
Lunch preparations were underway. Mita skinned.
I chopped. And we kept at it for a long time. Being
busy not only prevented my leg from stiffening but
also kept my thoughts in check. These were awful
thoughts of those I had lost and those I stood to lose.
I told myself this didnt include the body hanging
limp and unconscious inside. He was the enemy. The
enemy. Enemy. I kept repeating it till it was the only
word reverberating in my head.
When we were done with the meat and Mita had
handed it over to Kamal inside, I asked her about taking
a bath. The grime on my body had started to feel like
a second skin and I was eager to peel it off.
Mita plucked a leafy stem from a bush close by
and then motioned me to follow her. As we followed a
zigzag path through the jungle, Mita kept throwing bits
of the shaggy stem along the way, marking our trail.
A few seconds later, we came across a small
clearing in the jungle. There was a tiny trickle of water
streaming through the clearing. Mita pointed to a small
patch on the side covered up with dry leaves.
THE ERONS 159
160 INFINITUDE
Theres a hole under there in which you can do yer
bit. Dont worry about the critters. This place is sealed
like a jaggers den. Jaggi didnt leave an inch without a
trap of some kind. He likes to do his bizzness in peace.
I nodded my head, troubled by the excessive
information Mita had just shared about Jaggis shy
bowels. I walked closer to the patch feeling confounded
by the idea of squatting over a hole. When I looked
up, I was startled to nd Mita gone. But then my eyes
followed the trail of leaves shed left behind and I felt
reassured of being able to nd my way back to the cave.
I quickly took off my clothes and after I had washed
them next to the stream, I spread them out on a low-lying
branch to dry. Then I uncovered the hole and plugged
my nose to stop the festering smell from invading my
nostrils. By the time I had done my business and washed
up, my clothes had already dried up.
I put them back on and followed the trail but as I
reached the mouth of the cave, I hesitated. I chanted the
words in my mind. Enemy. Enemy. ENEMY and then
squaring my shoulders, I entered the cave. I avoided
looking in that corner. Instead, I kept my eyes xed
on Kamal, who was pouring out a steaming broth into
a row of bowls. All of them were gathered around the
stone stove. I took my place next to Mita and picked
up my bowl. The broth looked lling but I suddenly
seemed to have lost my appetite.
After watching the others eat for a while, I made
myself take a spoonful and chewed down the necessary
sustenance. Suddenly, a loud groan echoed through
the cave. I stiffened my back, trying real hard to stop
myself from getting up and running to him.
Feeling everyones eyes on me, I made myself take
THE ERONS 161
a deep breath and relaxed. I lifted another spoonful
of the broth and gulped it down without bothering to
chew it. Then I heard him groan again and I knew I
couldnt just sit there. He might be an enemy, but he
was without a doubt, the only means of bringing my
Mom back.
It was a justication I had to keep telling myself as
well as the others. And I did.
I told them that I needed Neel conscious and sane
so he could tell me where my Mom was. Kamal looked
unconvinced throughout my talk, but when I nished,
he nodded his agreement.
After everyone had their meal, I took Mitas help
in making the salve she had applied on me. Then
armed with some rags, water and the salve I walked
towards Neel.
One look at his broken body and I could feel all my
justications, all my resolve crumbling. With trembling
hands I untied his arms. Freed of all restraints, his body
slouched on mine. Unable to bear his bulk, I almost
toppled back on the ground, but then all of a sudden,
the weight was lifted away from me. I looked up to nd
Jaggi holding Neel by his armpits. He put him down
on the oor and there was no love lost in the way he
went about it. But before he left, he looked at me and
said, Better wrap up his hands after you put the green.
Itll help them heal faster.
I started cleaning Neels hands and even though he
groaned softly, he didnt open his eyes.
Mita put down a small glass bottle beside me.
Kamals feelin guilty. Took vantage of it. Pour it on
his ngers before putting the greens. Itll numb the
pain and zap the pus from starting.
162 INFINITUDE
I listened to Mitas advice and meticulously cleaned
Neels hands with the thick syrupy liquid. After that
was done, I applied the green salve and then nally
bandaged his hands with strips of cloth. After that I
poured some water in his mouth and raised his head
to make him swallow it. Five mouthfuls of water and I
knew I had done the best I could.
As the daylight dwindled, I helped Jaggi and Mita
in some more chopping work for dinner. Once the meal
was prepared, I ate quickly and then tried to make
Neel have at least half of his. Even though he didnt
open his eyes, he was conscious enough to swallow the
spoonfuls I put in his mouth.
Everybody started settling in for the night but I was
unable to sleep. I kept dgeting on my lumpy mattress
till I just gave in and came out to sit by Neels prostrate
form. Inspecting my earlier handiwork, I realized his
bandages were already soaked through with blood
and pus.
So for the next few hours, I removed all of them, re-
applied some of the leftover salve and then bandaged
his hands again. I kept telling myself that I was doing
all this only to get to my Mom. But I knew I was just
fooling myself.
Closing my eyes, I tried to imbibe some of the cold
strength of the rock digging into my back. But then I
heard him moan in his sleep and it was my undoing.
Tears came silently, steadily and with them came
ashes from my past. Asha compulsively ipping her
hair behind her ear, Mom tucking me in for the night,
Neel grazing my cheek with his knuckles and kissing
me like he was consuming my mind, body and soul.
The images whirled in my mind edging each other out
THE ERONS 163
till there was nothing but a lead weight left behind in
my heart. I felt crushed under its enormous burden and
panic surged through me. Terried, I tore open my eyes
and found myself drenched in sweat.
I steadied myself for a few moments till my mind
awoke to the sound of Mitas chopping knife. Daytime
and she was already outside, getting on with breakfast
preparations. I got up and looked around the cave.
It was empty and Neel . . . Neel was conscious and
looking at me. I sucked in a breath. He was sitting up,
leaning against the stone wall, one bandaged hand
resting on a raised knee and the other cradled in his
lap. Suddenly, he leaned forward towards me. I jerked
back in response. Neel frowned at my reaction but
then his face cleared. Moving back, he leaned his head
against the stone wall.
I looked away, working on building up my defences,
but then he asked, You know?
I nodded, feeling my defences crumble and my
throat close up.
Everything?
I nodded again and he sighed. After a few seconds,
he leaned towards me again and this time I had
to remind myself not to move back. He whispered
urgently, Dont worry. We will get out of here. My
father will be here soon.
I looked at him in alarm wondering what he meant.
Either he had a tracker on him or he had been able to
signal our location to the . . . Erons . . . somehow.
Neel answered my unasked questions. The chip
in your nose. They can track me through you so . . .
I didnt wait for him to nish. I was already up and
scrambling away from him when I felt his bandaged
164 INFINITUDE
hand clasp my elbow. He whirled me around to face
him and I could see from the agony on his face that
the sudden movement had taken its toll on his hands.
What are you doing? he hissed at me.
I was suddenly very angry, not just at him but at
myself for not being able to enjoy his pain. Had I not
lost enough at their hands to be worrying about him?
Im going to warn them. They saved my life.
I know that. But they also turned my hands into putty.
I gave him that, but I was not ready to back down.
My eyes blazed with the fire burning inside me,
for Asha, for Mitas childhood and for the countless
terrorized children from the archived videos Rebyt had
pushed down my throat.
Theyre my people and youre one of them. The . . .
the Erons.
Neel looked at me with an expression I couldnt quite
ascertain. Disappointment? Suspicion?
Thats what they call us? The Erons?
What had you expected? Theyd be happy to let you
steal their . . . our lives, our world?
Not me, Myrah. Dont blame me for my races
doings. Like I dont blame you for what they did to me.
Its not you against me, Myrah. Its them against us.
I looked at his face, at the earnestness in his eyes
and all I could see were the faces of the people Id lost.
But I knew I needed him. I needed him to bring back
my Mom.
I made myself calm down and thought it through.
So what happens when your father gets here?
Neel looked at me for a few moments, studying my
face before replying, You and me, we leave with him.
THE ERONS 165
I nodded my head towards the mouth of the cave.
And what about them?
They stay here. Even though theyve disbanded from
their sectors, Ill ask my father to grant forgiveness.
Disbanded? Thats what you think they did?
They ran away because their sectors were bombed
and destroyed. Their families, their lives everything
destroyed with it.
Neels face paled and he looked at me with disbelief.
Thats not true. My father would never do that!
For fates sake, whats your father got to do with it?
I asked him, almost shouting it in his face. Before he
could reply, he was ung away from my face and thrown
against the wall. I screamed in horror as I watched him
crumple to the oor. I started to run towards him, but
then I saw Jaggi standing there watching me. I held
myself back even as Neel got up on his feet again. My
mind was in a quandary. Should I tell Jaggi about the
chip in my nose? But then if I told him he might hurt
Neel again, or do much worse before everyone could
make a run for it. And then what? Even if I was able to
remove the chip, who knew how far we would all be
able to run before the Erons caught us.
On the other hand, if I didnt tell Jaggi anything it
might just pan out as Neel had described. Me on my
way to nding my Mom and them staying here. Safe.
What was he telling you? Jaggi asked me, softly
and slowly. I had a feeling that soft and slow with Jaggi
was a combination that didnt bode well. I blurted out
the rst thing that came to my mind.
He was telling me about his father.
Jaggi quirked up an eyebrow. His father? Who is . . .?
166 INFINITUDE
A scream interrupted him. It was coming from
outside and it was Mitas voice. We both ran outside,
but my feet skidded to a grinding halt at the mouth of
the cave. A small black xeppel stood at the place where
Mitas chopping board used to be.
It was unlike any of the xeppels I had ever seen
before. Its wings were diaphanous and fluttered
noiselessly. Perched on multiple steel legs that were
bent at an unnatural angle, the xeppel looked more
like a human-sized mantis.
I was so shocked at seeing the xeppel that I failed
to immediately notice Mita who was struggling in the
vice-like grip of a man. A man who was dressed in
strange black armour. Mitas presence fully registered
in my mind only when the man slapped her across
the face.
Before I could react, I saw Jaggi dashing forward
towards them, but then another armour-clad man cut
his way and drew him short by pointing a long metal
rod at him. The rod made a sharp zing sound and
Jaggi crumpled to the oor.
All I could do was stand there through it all, transxed
to the spot. My eyes assessed the man standing over
Jaggi. Bulky and tall, he handled the metal rod like a
prized possession, cradling it like a gun. I would have
never ever mistaken it for a gun if I hadnt seen it in
action. The body of the gun was slender and sharp like
a sword designed for mutilation. The only thing it had
in common with a bulky nerve gun was its tip. It was
fashioned like a muzzle.
One look at that gun and I knew this was not going
to pan out as smoothly as Neel had said. I felt Neels
presence behind me now, but before I could confront
THE ERONS 167
him, the bulky man stepped forward and pointed his
gun at me. He motioned me to move and I knew better
than to resist. I followed his order.
He led me to Kamal and Deepak, who were already
kneeling on the ground. I knelt next to Kamal and
mimicked his pose by putting my hands behind my
neck. The bulky man stood close and kept his gun
trained on us. After a few minutes, Mita and Jaggi were
made to join our line-up as well. Of course, Neel was
left alone. He stood at the mouth of the cave, looking
at me, but I found it hard to meet his eyes. There was
just too much anger in me. In a way, he was the reason
for all of this. For us being treated this way, for me not
telling Jaggi and allowing the rest of them to run when
they still had the chance.
The pebbles on the ground dug into my knees, but
it didnt bother me. Something far worse was eating
me up from the inside. Guilt at having betrayed my
own kind.
I heard Kamal draw in a sharp breath. I turned to
look at him and found him staring in the direction of
the xeppel. I followed his gaze and saw a man standing
next to the xeppels hatch. He was tall and lean, his
shaved head extending into a broad and prominent
forehead, deep-seated eyes and a proud chin. The rest
of him was covered in the same black armour as the
other two men.
Strangely, the more I looked at his face the more
it disturbed me. I didnt realize why until I saw Neel
walking towards him.
At first my mind refused to believe it but the
similarity was too much to ignore. The same striking
eyes, high cheekbones, the same proud stance.
168 INFINITUDE
Lek, Kamal breathed out. It was much too soft for
the guard to hear, but my ears caught the name and
the truth jolted me. The Eron who had started it all, the
Eron responsible for the obliteration of our kind, that
Eron . . . was Neels father?
I watched as Neel got closer to his father and stopped
when he was standing within an arms length of him.
They didnt share any hugs or even a handshake,
instead they talked or at least Neel did, while his
father stood there motionless with an unnervingly calm
expression on his face. I was still watching him when
he suddenly turned and xed his eyes on me. The
coldness of his glare made me cringe and I quickly cast
my eyes downwards as a horrible feeling grew inside
me. A sharp prickle of fear rose up my spine making
me look up once more. And just as I did, the glint of
the guards gun blinded my eyes. A gun which he had
raised in the air above me.
No! I heard Neels voice cry out from somewhere
far away as the world around me came to a standstill.
Then it was just me and the shining edge of mortality
waiting to slice through me. I sucked in a breath and
a wracking shudder travelled throughout my body. Its
too soon. Its much too soon. I wasnt ready to die yet.
I watched with paralyzing horror as the blade rushed
to meet me and then whooshed past me, missing me
by just an inch. I looked up and found the guards eyes
xed on Lek.
A fresh wave of terror wracked through me as I saw
Lek give him a nod. But the guard didnt raise the blade
over me again. Instead, he unhooked a baton from his
waist and brought it down on Kamal. Kamal cried out
in pain and his body thunked down right next to me.
THE ERONS 169
The brutality of the gesture wrecked me and I felt
my senses leaving me.
My body slumped to the ground and the last thing I
saw before my eyes closed was a girls face. Somehow
even that close to unconsciousness my mind registered
her presence because strangely the girl looked a lot
like Soni. But then maybe I was hallucinating because
her lips suddenly contorted. And it almost looked like
she was smiling.
X
THE CUBE
Stinger dated 29/12/2173: This is to notify all residents
that a batch of stray humans have been caught and are
being ferried to Panopticon IX. Please keep Airway 24
free, from 1300 to 1315. Thankful for your cooperation,
Neink, CC.
Panopticon IX, 29 December 2173
I pried my eyes open and a sharp blast of light
pierced through my skull. As I raised my arm to block
it out, I realized the intense orange blaze was actually
coming from me. I looked down in shock and found my
whole body glowing like a manic neon sign.
I squeezed my eyes shut, covering them with my
palms. Minutes passed and I tried hard to bolster my
courage. This time I braced myself before peeking down.
Oh, thank the fates. My body hadnt been converted
into a radioactive bulb. The unearthly glow was
actually coming from the garish orange jumpsuit I
was clothed in. I grazed the fabric with my ngers. It
was a strange luminous material. I had never seen the
likes of it before. My shoulders slumped with relief
but then I looked around and a fresh dread seized me.
Surrounding me in close proximity were metal walls.
Even the roof above was just about my height. It was
a small metal cube of some sort. I was trapped. Boxed-
in. I hugged myself as a big sob escaped my lips. Not
again. Not again. Not again.
As I tried to rein in my rising panic, a glint caught
my eye. It was coming from the wall behind me, the one
I had been resting my back against. I turned around
and dragged myself towards it and when I was closer
to the edge, I realized to my immense relief that that
particular side of the cube was open. There was no
wall there and it opened up into a large space. I looked
out, hoping this would be my escape route, but the
enormity of the scene was so sudden and so strange
that I immediately scampered back a little.
The room outside was impossibly huge. It couldnt
even be called a room. It was more like a huge hall.
Even bigger than the cavern of Baby Blue. But thats
where the similarity ended. There was nothing rough
or natural about this enormous, almost fantastical,
man-made cylindrical hall. The roof at an impossible
height above me, glinted with a metallic sheen and so
did the walls. There seemed to be no perceptible doors
or entrances into this space. It looked like a massive
and completely sealed metal cylinder.
The glint which had caught my eye earlier ashed
again and I realized where it was coming from. There
was a tall, glass-topped pillar in the centre of the hall.
It looked like an observatory of some kind.
I wondered if there were guards inside looking at me
right now. They could be wearing those sinister body
suits and carrying those menacing guns. The memory
dredged up bitter remorse and bile rose up my throat.
I immediately banished the dark thoughts away and
focused my attention on inspecting the pillar instead.
Staring at it now, I realized the cube I was squatting
THE CUBE 171
172 INFINITUDE
in had to be carved into the walls of this hall. And
since the observatory was almost at my eye-level,
the cube had to be located at some signicant height
from the ground.
I scooted closer to the edge to hazard a look down
below and realized that I was right. I was at the height
of about two tall skyscrapers away from the ground
and the drop was so steep that just looking down
made my head spin. I scooted up and jerked back,
but just as I did that, a sharp pain sliced through my
forehead. I slumped back on the oor and I had to
grab my head in my hands. It felt like it would split
in two if I didnt.
As the pain slowly dimmed, I realized what had just
happened. The opening of my cube was sealed with
some sort of an electric eld. The throbbing dulled but
the thought of being conned like this . . . like an animal
in a laboratory set me off again. Frantic, I looked around
the walls of my cube, searching for some chink, some
gap, but it was just seamless metal. I collapsed back on
the oor and stared dejectedly out into the hall. And
thats when I saw them.
All around, dotted across the cavernous room
outside, were identical cubes just like mine, suspended
in the air. There were no ropes or cables holding
them in the space and it seemed like they were all
held together by some kind of a powerful force eld.
Horried, I stared at the hazy glowing silhouettes inside
each of those cubes.
Floating around like tiny building blocks, there
had to be thousands of those tiny cubes stuck in this
metallic giant cylinder. The whole structure could have
been a fascinating marvel of modern technology had
THE CUBE 173
it not been lled with thousands of people imprisoned
inside them.
I sucked in a breath as I realized the magnitude of
where I was. I was an inmate in a ginormous prison.
Of course, thats what this was . . . a prison designed
by the Erons . . . to hold . . . humans!
Suddenly an ear-piercing buzzer went off outside,
snapping me right out of my thoughts. It went on
for what seemed like an eternity, the sound jarring
my already frayed nerves. And just when I thought I
couldnt take it anymore, it switched off abruptly. A
hush fell over the entire hall and the numb stillness
was unnerving. I waited with bated breath wondering
what it all meant. Then my spine almost snapped with
shock as a loud metallic clang rang through my ears.
Terried, I saw a row of elevators starting to emerge
from the roof above.
Slow and steady, they inched down the length of the
large prison. There was one elevator for each column
of suspended smaller cubes. I watched as each of the
elevators paused in front of a cube, before proceeding
to the one below it.
What were they doing? What was coming out of the
elevator? I sat there, freaking out and thinking about
all the scary possibilities, when suddenly, something
blocked my view. I sucked in a breath as I realized it
was a simple elevator that now blocked the entrance
to my cube. And it was lled with people . . . humans,
wearing glowing jumpsuits just like mine. I was still
staring dumbfounded when a hand wrapped around
my wrist and pulled me in with a sharp tug. Then, the
elevator began its descent.
I stared at the people around me. They were
174 INFINITUDE
all the same. Girls with shorn hair, hollowed-out
cheeks and tired eyes. Was my hair . . .? With a sense
of foreboding, I raised my right hand. My ngers
weaved through air and my heart skipped a beat.
With trembling ngers, I grazed the bristles and the
uneven bumps on my scalp.
The hand clasping my wrist tightened its hold and
I looked up to nd Mitas eyes staring back into mine.
The elevator stopped again and I turned warily towards
the door, but it was just another girl getting in.
Jaggi . . . Deepak . . . Kamal . . . opposite us, Mita
whispered in my ear. I nodded. I got what she was
telling me. Mita and I were obviously in the same row
as we had gotten into the same elevator. And according
to her, Jaggi, Deepak and Kamal were being held in the
rows of cubes facing us. After a second, she whispered,
This whole thing . . . is underground.
I nodded again, but I was distracted by the girls
who kept intermediately walking in. They all wore
the same expression of shrivelled-up despair. Like
something inside of them had been irreversibly broken.
I wondered how much time it would take for Mita and
me to start looking like this. A week, a month, a year?
The elevator nally descended into a smaller hall
where it stopped and everyone shufed out only to be
prodded into two separate lines for men and women
by guards dressed in black uniforms. The uniforms just
left their faces uncovered making them look all the
more intimidating. I snuck glances at them as the line
moved forward. Their features differed, but all of them
had some remarkable similarities. The same dusky
complexion, shaved heads and almost hairless faces
and all of them wore that same kind of armour I had
THE CUBE 175
seen Neels father and his guards wearing. I wondered
if they also had the same eye colour as Neel. As I tried
to look closer at one of the guards, he happened to catch
me staring. The look he gave me then was lled with
such disgust that it made me cringe. I immediately cast
my eyes downwards and shufed forward with the line.
As I stepped closer to the front, I saw that the hall
had two sections with rows of stalls and the men and
women were segregated as they disappeared into
the respective bathing areas. The girls in front of me
dispersed into a row of stalls at the end of the hall.
From the sound emanating from inside these stalls, I
assumed they were showers. After a few minutes, the
showers all switched off at the same time and seconds
later, the girls stepped out dripping and their jumpsuits
clinging to their skin.
It was my turn next and as I shufed into the tiny stall,
I was relieved to nd a UV pot with a shower right on
top of it. I did what I could as quickly as I could, even
though the shower had already started pelting a erce
jet of water at me. I looked down at my ankle and found
it swollen, but at least it was not lled with that rancid
pus any more. Then all too soon, my time was up. I
walked out and joined the line of drenched girls. We
had to wait till everybody was done. But considering
the time allotted, it didnt take long.
After everyone had gone through this strange
bathing ritual, we walked in a le towards another
slightly larger hall. The men must have gone through
the same treatment as I saw them ling into the larger
hall as well, looking wet but clean.
I rubbed my arms to settle the goosebumps and
found my jumpsuit was already almost completely
176 INFINITUDE
dry. What Mom wouldnt have given for this wonder
fabric? Thinking about Mom made my nose sting and
my eyes water. I wondered where she was right that
moment. I wondered if she knew what had happened
to me. Then I wondered if she ever would. I shook my
head and snapped my mind out of the downward spiral
it was threatening to pull me into.
I tried to distract myself by craning my head and
seeing what the girls in front were collecting from a
chute in one of the walls. When a few of them started
moving towards the rows of chairs and tables up ahead,
I nally saw what they were carrying. Plates. Plates
lled with food.
When it was my turn, I went up to a niche in the
wall. It had two buttons which said Man and Woman
respectively. I pressed the Woman button and a small
ap opened in the wall and a plate came out. I collected
my plate and proceeded to one of the chairs as well.
It was only when I was seated that I took a good look
at the food. Disappointment surged at the sight of
different coloured spoonfuls of porridge.
Green, white and red globs of porridge. I didnt
know how long I had been stuck here in this prison,
but my stomach felt much like it did after those three
days in the net. Starving for food, but going queasy at
the sight of it. Especially when the food looked like
something I should be painting a canvas with.
I looked around and noticed that no one was talking.
The clatter of cutlery was the only sound echoing in the
large hall. In fact, most of the other girls and guys had
already nished the meagre amount of food on their
plates. Even Mita sitting right beside me had her arm
placed protectively around her plate and she seemed
THE CUBE 177
to be completely focused on putting every last bit in
her mouth.
Strengthening my resolve, I put a spoonful of the
white porridge in my mouth and found it didnt taste
that foul. It actually tasted quite good. But that may
also be because my body had recognized these globs
as sustenance.
As I swallowed down each bite, I wondered about
what would happen to us. How long would we have
to stay here? How would we escape? The buzzer went
off again and my unaccustomed body jerked at the
severity of that shrill sound.
All the orange-suited prisoners got up in unison as
if they had been programmed to react to the buzzer.
In almost synchronized movements, they picked up
their plates and dumped it down a chute on another
wall nearby. There was the male-female segregation
again and while the men were sent off into some other
room, the girls moved to one end of the food hall itself.
Mita and I followed their lead, till we all ended up
in a line facing one of the walls. I waited, wondering
about the next thing planned for us, when the wall we
were facing suddenly started to disappear. It was as if
it was being evaporated into thin air!
But I didnt get a breather to think about it. Thats
because I was much too busy assessing the aerodrome
that had just been revealed. I knew that it was an
aerodrome because right in its centre was a huge xeppel.
This one was also shaped like a mantis but it was a lot
bigger, big enough to carry the entire lot of us. There was
a walkway that appeared from the ground beneath our
feet and I presumed this was for us to reach the xeppel.
My guess was proven right as I saw the girls making
178 INFINITUDE
their way down the walkway and starting to board the
xeppel. The line moved forward quickly, egged on by
the guards standing on either side of the line.
When I nally entered the darkness of the xeppel,
Mita clasped my hand. I held on to the crutch offered
and we stood there sharing our grief, both of us terried
at what the fates had in store for us.
When the door slid shut, most of the girls started
shifting towards the sides. Some sat down on the oor
with their backs against the walls, others just collapsed
on the oor and lay curled up into themselves. I looked
at their tired, exhausted, barely-there bodies and a
dread started building up inside me. I thought of talking
to them, asking them about where we were going and
I even started to move towards one of them when Mita
pulled me back. I gave her a questioning look and in
reply she placed a nger on the back of my ear lobe. I
grazed the spot where she had placed her nger and to
my shock found a small lump in my skin there. It was
very similar to the one in my nostril where the ismeltz
chip was still embedded.
This new chip could be a bug or a tracker, or both
that kept a track of our movement and could hear
all that we said. I looked at Mita with wide eyes and
watched as she shifted her gaze to a corner on the roof.
I hazarded a discreet glance in the direction her eyes
moved. There was a sealed-in exit door with a big red
button beside it. And then I saw it. Right above the
button was a small camouaged surveillance camera
which could give a 360-degree view of this entire space.
We were being monitored in every way possible. They
could hear us, they could see us and they might be
doing it around the clock.
THE CUBE 179
There was nothing we could possibly do so we
huddled against the wall and waited for our destination
with rising trepidation. The hundreds of haggard faces
all around us did nothing to quell our anxiety.
I didnt feel the descent so when the doors suddenly
burst open, the unexpected erce sunlight blinded
me for a few minutes. Mita and I stood up and moved
towards the exit. The air that hit us was thick with
humidity. As the girls started getting off the xeppel,
both Mita and I stood there for a minute taking in the
scene before us.
Acres and acres of unharvested corn elds stretched
all around us. A transparent dome-shaped roof swept
over this vast land, disappearing into the fields
somewhere in the horizon.
Out of all the things I had envisioned, I had not
expected this.
Forming a line, everyone started moving towards a
small outpost surrounded by bristling golden hay. As
we got closer, I saw a guard standing on a pedestal
beside the outpost. When the rst girl reached him
he handed out a card to her. I watched the girl as she
looked down at her card and then headed off on a path
cutting through the hay. The next girl did the same
though she headed off in a different direction. When
it was my turn, I took the card from his hands without
daring to look up.
Later, when I inspected the card, I realized it looked
like a digital map of some sort. A timer started at the
edge of the screen and I headed off, giving one last
glance in Mitas direction who had just received her map
after me. She caught my eye and gave me an almost
imperceptible nod. Her destination seemed to be in the
180 INFINITUDE
opposite direction from mine because she immediately
headed off to the right, disappearing from my vision.
I started following the direction pointed by the map
as well and as I walked, I realized I was not treading
on mud but metal. No. This place was not what I had
expected at all.
I walked on that path for about ve minutes when
the map started beeping again. I must have been
getting closer to my destination. After a few more
steps, the beeping fell silent. When I looked up, I found
myself facing a monstrous metallic machine. For a
few seconds, I just stood there looking at it wondering
what to do. Then I looked at the golden elds beyond.
Stretching out invitingly, promising space and freedom,
they made me wonder if I could outrun those guards in
spite of the tracking chips embedded in my skin. No
one seemed to be around and there were certainly no
cameras here.
I was still deciding what to do when the card started
beeping again. I checked it but instead of ashing
the time, it read 2 minutes inactive. Of course. They
wouldnt want their slaves to slack on the job.
Banishing all fanciful thoughts of escape, I shoved
the card in my pocket and reached out for the row of
buttons on the machine. I was just about to test one of
them when the beeping sounded again and a voice
cracked down on me.
Dont even think about it.
I turned around to see a girl standing right behind
me. She was tall and was once strongly built but
now the skin on her face was stretched so tight, her
cheekbones almost looked like they had been sculpted
on top. The bristles on her head were bright red in
THE CUBE 181
stark contrast to her dark ebony complexion. The girl
shoved her card inside her shirt front and without
sparing me another glance rougly pulled the ears of
the corn downward and twisted the whole cob off the
stalks that grew all around the machine.
Dont just stand there, moron! Get to work, she
snapped.
So that is what I had to do.
We worked hard, twisting ears, tearing off corn
and stacking plants till our hands were raw and the
machines tray was full. Then the huge machine
automatically reversed and headed off into the eld.
Another machine took it place and the whole process
started again. We worked for hours and hours. The
glare of sunlight through the glass dome was merciless
and the air was so pungent, it was almost tangible.
The girl didnt speak a word and the work was much
too tedious for me to initiate any kind of conversation.
The sun travelled across the sky till it was directly
on top of us and beating down on our backs. I was
exhausted and knew I was cracking under the work
load. But the other girl didnt take a break, didnt slack,
not even for a second. Id severely misjudged her before.
This one wasnt lacking in stamina or in will. I, on the
other hand, was lagging far, far behind in both. I had
never undertaken this kind of physical labour in my life
and the humidity, lack of sufcient food or water and
my previous injuries were beginning to take a toll. I felt
that I could pass out at any moment.
Just as we nished loading up another tray, our
maps started beeping again. The girl immediately
straightened up and marched off into the elds. Maybe
our shift was over?
182 INFINITUDE
I consulted my map and found it was directing me
towards the same direction in which the girl had taken
off. I headed off on the same path cutting through the
eld and took the turn indicated. Almost immediately
someone pushed me over roughly and I landed on the
ground in a heap. Shocked out of my wits, I looked up
to nd the girl digging her knee into my chest. Even
undernourished, she packed enough mass to make my
ribs strain.
Why are you following me? she hissed.
Unable to speak, I just handed over my beeping map
to her. With her knee still pressing into my chest, she
glanced at the map I was clutching in my hands. Then
shifting her eyes to me, she gave me a death glare and
snatched the map away.
Only after she had checked the map, and was
convinced that I was not without reason in following
her, did she lift her weight off of me.
I saw her walking away but I didnt budge an inch. I
kept lying down for a few more minutes, too tired and
stunned to get up. The card started beeping again. My
rst impulse was to ing it away but what good would
that have done?
Feeling weary and utterly dejected, I somehow
managed to get up and trudge along the route directed
by my map. In ve minutes I had reached my destination
which was a large unintimidating metal shed. When
I walked inside, my knees buckled at the sight of the
work ahead of me.
Rows and rows of huge rectangular frames rested
against the walls of the shed. Stretching in between
these frames were thick meshes of metal wires coated
in layers of a white crusty substance.
THE CUBE 183
The other girl had already begun her work. A
scrubber in hand, she was busy cleaning the wire mesh
on one frame.
Lacking any other option, I got on with the job
as well.
Flakes of white crust started falling off as I brushed
away, but the wires were so thickly coated with the
deposit that it took a good amount of time to complete
even one frame.
By the time the next beeping sounded, I was too
exhausted to move. I couldnt do much except to follow
the girl as she walked back through the route we had
come in. My hands were blistered, my face raw, my
lips cracked and the pain in my ankle was back with a
vengeance. Surprisingly, the girl looked unaffected by
the days work. Except for the sweat marks under her
arms, there was not a scratch on her. If I ever hoped to
survive this, I had to seriously up my game.
When it was time to board the xeppel, I just about
managed to enter and collapse on its oor. As soon
as everyone was inside, my eyes searched for Mita.
Unable to spot her, I got up and walked around,
searching among the tired harrowed faces. And I still
couldnt nd her!
The doors of the xeppel shut behind me and I
panicked. I noticed that there were a lot fewer girls in
the xeppel now than there had been in the morning.
Fear pushed my body into action and I scrambled
through the prostate bodies and reclining forms. I called
out Mitas name and searched for her everywhere till
I nally found her huddled in a corner with her head
bent down on her knees.
I heaved a sigh of relief and collapsed next to her.
184 INFINITUDE
Leaning back against the wall, I bumped my shoulder
against hers. She didnt raise her head.
Mita? She still didnt reply, didnt even lift a nger
in acknowledgment. It was only when the door opened
again and everybody started leaving that she nally
moved and got up. And thats when I saw her face.
Dried up tears ran down her cheeks, streaking
through the grime and crusted blood. I sat there, reeling
in shock until a harsh voice cut through my daze.
I quickly scrambled up on my feet as I saw a guard
shouting at the girls who had either passed out or dozed
off on the oor of the xeppel.
Once back to our prison home, we were led inside
the food hall. There were no men around this time. Mita
was somewhere far ahead of me in the line. I pressed
the Woman button and my tray appeared in the chute
and I lost all thought of tracking Mita down. The same
three globs adorned the plate this time, along with a
much-needed glass of water.
I almost inhaled the food in. It was grossly insufcient
for what my hunger demanded and nished much too
quickly. I saved the water for the end and drank it in
slow sips, cherishing the taste. Both my imprisonments
had made sure I never took it for granted ever again.
Dinner over and done with, the elevators took us
back to our cubes. I staggered into my cube and my
eyes closed before my body even hit the oor.
The sound of the buzzer pounded through my
head, jarring me awake. It was too soon. I felt like I
had just closed my eyes and my body still ached from
the previous days exertions. I opened my eyes and
my rst thought was of Mita. Had yesterdays hard
labour broken her? With the life shed led in the
THE CUBE 185
jungle, she should have been better conditioned for
this than me. But then she was also younger. Her
ashen face from yesterday ashed before my eyes. I
had to talk to her.
The elevators started descending from the roof
and it was not long before I climbed into mine. Mita
was standing in front of the lot, her face bleak and
expressionless. I clutched her hands urging her to look
at me.
Mita whats the matter? What happened?
She raised her eyes to mine and I cringed at what I
saw in them. Her eyes looked inert and insensible. The
re in them was gone, completely crushed.
I squeezed her hands tighter. Dont let them break
you, Mita! I told her trying hard to keep the quiver
out of my voice.
The elevator doors opened again and Mita shook
her hand off. She walked ahead of me and even in the
bathing line she kept her distance. During breakfast, I
tried hard to catch her eyes. Not once did she look up
from her plate. But I didnt give up. Once inside the
xeppel, I walked up to where she stood but then before
I could say anything, she turned around and walked
away again.
The constant rebuff didnt hurt me. The possibilities
of why she was acting this way did.
I was paired with the same girl as yesterday. I tried
talking to her, asking her name, offering her mine but
just like Mita, she also completely ignored me.
Still I kept trying to draw something out of her
while we went through the back-breaking work. I was
desperate to nd some information about this place.
Anything that could help me gure out how to help Mita.
186 INFINITUDE
After braving hours of my incessant questioning she
nally straightened up and gave me a a stinking look.
She raised her hand, pointed to her ear and then in the
direction of the xeppel. I understood. She was telling
me they were listening.
I picked up a thick stem and tried to scribble in the
wet mud. She hissed a breath when she saw me doing
that and came over to stomp on the area where Id just
started scribbling. Then she held me by the elbow
and pressed hard. She glared in my eyes, searching
for something. A beat later, just as abruptly, she let go
and moved to a strand of corn nearby. Breaking it in
little bits, she started forming words by placing them on
the ground. Pressure, she wrote. What did she mean?
Seeing the frown on my face, she walked over to the
little pathway from which we came and tapped on the
exposed underground metal.
I nodded my head, nally understanding.
The ground was pressure-sensitive. Maybe it
had been made that way for checking soil density
or maintaining water requirements for the crops.
Keeping tabs on the human workers might have been
an added bonus.
Considering how high the crops around us were, I
assumed the only thing they couldnt do in the open
elds was to keep a visual eye on us. Then I watched
as the girl crouched beside me and started forming
another word. Gema.
I nodded my head and started to write another
question when she clutched my hand and waved her
card in front of my face. Right. We couldnt keep sitting
for too long, the card would register our inactivity. We
THE CUBE 187
got on with our work as before but at least, now, the
secret camaraderie we shared gave me something to
go on.
In the evening, I found Mita in the same corner
of the xeppel as yesterday, hunched over with her
back against the wall. I sat next to her and opened
my mouth many times to say something but somehow
words failed me. Then I started humming a song my
Nani used to sing to me when I was a kid. It was
something about boats and bodies and hope. I never
really understood it though the tune always stayed
with me.
Midway, I closed my eyes and got lost in the melody.
The drone of the xeppel massaged my tired back and
the notes soothed my tortured mind. A strange mufed
sound interrupted my momentary escape and I opened
my eyes to nd Mita clutching her hands behind her
head, rocking her torso back and forth. Shocked at
seeing her so wrought up, I instantly wrapped my arms
around her. I drew circles on her back. Petted her feet.
Rubbed her arm. Trying all that I could do to soothe
her. After a few minutes, she quietened down and then
. . . started telling me.
Her words sparked anger inside me, spread its re
through my veins, seared my mind. I clenched my sts
into balls and curled my toes to contain the scream of
rage bubbling inside me.
. . . theres nowhere to go . . . no hope, Mita nished
off. I turned to her and held her by the shoulders.
Theres always hope Mita. There is always hope.
There is no escape from this hell, Mita said with a
grim certainty.
188 INFINITUDE
What do you mean?
They beat me up yesterday because I tried to scram
away into the elds. They caught me before I had taken
ten steps away from my post.
The fact that she ran away without me pricked a
little but I could hardly fault her for following her self-
preservation instincts. I looked at Mita and pointed
to my ears. She nodded slowly and looked away. I
squeezed my eyes shut and leaned back against the
metal wall, dejected. Miras hopelessness deated my
own hopes. Only a miracle could save us now, there
was no plausible way out of this prison. I closed my
eyes and thumped my head on the wall.
Maybe all the clanging did my brain some good
because right then something occurred to me. Without
looking at her, I clasped my hand around Mitas wrist
and pressed down on it in calculated gaps and grips.
Then I waited, hoping she would understand what I
had just asked her in Morse code.
Understand?
She threw a glance at me and then quickly looked
away.
No, she replied. And for a moment, I just let it sink
in. The success of this small act of deance did more
to heal my spirit than anything else had done in a long
time. Judging by the tight grip of her hand, I knew
Mita felt the same way. Her body suddenly tensed and
I could see she was eager to tell me something.
Sign Deepak? she asked me.
It was a good idea but I didnt want her to put herself
in any more danger. I started to tell her to not do any
such thing, but then I stopped. Her eyes were looking
alive again. Eager and hopeful.
THE CUBE 189
Okay careful, I told her instead.
From then on, we communicated this way every day,
sharing scraps of information.
A week passed before Mita was successful in making
contact with Deepak in the food hall. I dont know how
she managed it as conversation was forbidden. I later
found out that she had tapped a quick Morse code on
her plate while she was standing behind him and it had
worked. More days passed before she could glean any
kind of information from him. When she did, she told
me Deepaks work involved feeding endless piles of
garbage into machines. She said he had called them
garbage lands or islands but she couldnt be sure.
As time went by, Mira kept up her Morse code
interactions with the men and told me that Deepak was
sounding more and more dejected. He had told Mita
that their food rations were even lesser than ours, their
labour was harder and the treatment a lot harsher. He
also mentioned that Jaggi and Kamal were not faring
very well either. I squeezed my eyes shut in despair.
This place was killing us all and no one cared. We were
just dispensable human slaves.
It came to me one day as I was cleaning the lters
and cursing the obstinate crystalline crusts on the grills.
Where did this forsaken crust come from anyways? The
question made me stop midway. I stepped back and
looked at the huge frame.
Reduce it to one fth of its size and it was not very
different from the air lters my Mom used to clean once
a month in our old apartment. Maybe these were air
lters as well? Their size was in perfect proportion to
the dome they were installed in? If this was a biome or
a specialized climate controlled greenhouse that the
190 INFINITUDE
Erons had created for maximizing crop productivity
then they would need these air lters to maintain the
right humidity and temperature. It all made sense
except for the white crust. Dirt, bres or even calcium
deposits were expected, but this white substance
looked different. I grazed my nger on it and put it in
my mouth. My lips puckered at the salty avour. Salt
deposits. But why salt?
I tried to think like my Mom would. Objectively
and dispassionately. Okay. The deposits came from
the water being used to humidify the air. Salt deposits
implied the water had a high salt content. High salinity
in turn meant this dome was built close to the sea. Wait,
maybe it was built on the sea. Maybe that was why
they were ying in all of us every day directly from the
prison into the dome. And that meant that for a certain
part of the ride every day, the xeppel ew over water
. . . or to be more precise sea water.
A hand landed on my shoulder and I started. Gema
was standing behind me and my map was beeping. I
checked it. 4 minutes inactive. I had been so engrossed
in my thoughts, I hadnt even heard it till now.
I tucked the map back in my shirt and nodded at
Gema. Getting back to work, I wondered if I should
share all this with her, but there was no way I could
conde in her without the Erons getting to know about
it. And the possibility she knew Morse code was almost
negligible. Plus I knew next to nothing about her. I
decided to let it go. It was far too risky.
On our way back in the xeppel, I shared all my
deductions with Mita. Though she didnt say anything,
the sceptical look on her face told me she thought my
theory was highly unlikely. Still the next day, as the
THE CUBE 191
xeppel took off I saw her gluing her ears to the wall.
I realized she was trying to gure out whether we
were ying over land or water. After a few minutes,
she straightened up, disappointment lling her face.
Of course, against the drone of the xeppel there was
no way to tell the difference. I looked away trying
to focus on the count running in my head. When the
doors of the xeppel opened up again, I stopped. 1500.
Thats how many seconds it had taken for the xeppel
to reach the dome. It took twenty minutes every day
to ferry us between the prison and the dome. Twenty
minutes that would mark for us, the difference between
life and death.
I spent the rest of the day thinking about what lay
before us and realized the possibilities were bleak.
The way the Erons were working us, we would all be
dead in a month or two anyway. We had absolutely
nothing to lose.
On the way back, I clasped Mitas hand and told
her what I had in mind. Her eyes widened and she
turned her head to look at me. I didnt know what she
found in my face but I saw her squaring her shoulders
in response. She pressed down on my hand in an
afrmative sign.
Before we parted for dinner, I told her to send the
message to Deepak as well. Now all we needed was
for the fates to be on our side. This would be nothing
more than a suicide mission otherwise.
A week later, once Mita had been able to relay the
message to Deepak and hed passed it on to Jaggi and
Kamal, we drove our plan into action.
That day Mita and I waited for a few minutes after
the xeppel had taken off. When our counting reached
192 INFINITUDE
500, we both got up and started undressing. As we shed
our clothes, some of the girls turned to look at us with
wide curious eyes; some scampered away in fright,
while the others were just too broken to be bothered
by our antics.
I was too unnerved by what I was about to undertake
to feel even remotely conscious about my nakedness.
I quickly tied both the sleeves of my jumpsuit on one
hand and its legs, on the other. Mita did the same and
then we rushed towards the door. If anyone watching us
through the camera had registered our strange actions
they didnt seem to be doing much about it. Of course
all of that would change as soon as I pushed the red
button beside the door. And it did.
A ear-piercing siren lled the air as Mita and I stood
there, holding on tight to the railing, waiting as the door
opened unhurriedly and much too slowly. A sudden
blast of wind pushed against us and I staggered back,
almost losing my footing for a second. If it had not been
for Mita gripping my hand, I would have actually own
back into the crowd cowering behind us. I girded my
feet into the oor and both of us stood rmly at the
edge, clasping each others hands, the wind biting into
our skin, our jumpsuits billowing riotously behind us.
When I got a peek of the view below us, it brought
such joy to my entire being that I couldnt imagine
anything in my life ever surpassing this feeling.
Foaming blue waves yawned at us, blending
into azure calmness, stretching further down into
a shimmering skin of water. My stupid hunch had
actually worked!
I looked at Mita. She was smiling as wide as I was.
When she met my gaze, I nodded and then . . . we jumped.
THE CUBE 193
The jumpsuits broke our fall but only slightly. We
plummeted down. We were falling too fast from not too
far above. Freedom tasted of salt and iodine, but nearly
shattered every bone in my body. For a moment, it felt
like I was sinking, but then my survival instinct kicked
in and I started thrusting myself to the surface. I came
up gasping for breath and after a second, so did Mita.
I looked around, desperately scouting for land but
as far as I could see there was only water. I started
to panic, thinking we had jumped only to freeze to
a certain death when a metallic beam coming from
afar caught my eye. I waved at Mira and pointed in
that direction and then started undoing the jumpsuit
from my hands and legs. Having detached it, I tied
the jumpsuit around my neck and started swimming
towards the gleam. Considering that the xeppel took
about 20 minutes every day to reach the dome, the
glimmer was coming from a place too close to be the
elds and since we had waited for a few minutes before
jumping, it couldnt be the prison wed just left behind.
Hope bloomed in my heart and made me work harder
at getting to it.
It took us a long time to reach it. Partly, because
it was excruciating to swim without any protection
against the cold waters and also because of the rising
doubt I felt as I got closer to the spectacle slowly
revealing itself. It was an unearthly sight.
Five gleaming green towers shaped like enormous
concave petals stood tall on a giant oating pad. This
was denitely not made by humans.
This was Eron territory.
My heart sunk but we had nowhere else to go.
We had come too far to turn back now. We kept
194 INFINITUDE
swimming towards the structure which looked even
more intimidating close up. The petal-shaped towers
were covered by thick glossy plants but I could make
out the windows built in at each level. As we reached
the edge, I plunged my head underwater to search for
a way to climb up the sloping metallic pod.
After dipping in a couple of times, I realized that
the pod was ballasted by an underwater tower running
deep into the sea. Still searching for a way up the
smooth slope of the pod, I came up for a breath when
suddenly, something heavy hit my skull. Stunned with
shock as well as the force of the impact, I swung my
head around wondering where the blow had come
from. But there was no one around me. Then I looked
up and a net jacketed my face. Desperate, I tried to
ail my arms and legs when a familiar sharp pain
seared through the back of my head. An overpowering
feeling of helplessness dragged me down as dark spots
completely clouded my vision.
XI
THE RI DE
Stinger dated 09/06/2104: The design for the rst oating
self-sufcient aquatic city has been approved by our
Commander-in-Chief. Termed Aquapolis and fashioned
after the Hibiscus, the city will have a capacity for
100,000 inhabitants. Five different towers will comprise
the living facilities and will have the ability to close-in
while adapting to extreme weather conditions. The
central dome, aptly termed the Stybus, will use seawater
to humidify the environs and harvest the crops, thus
providing a sustainable food supply for the population
in face of the worst natural and chemical disasters.
Aquapolis 001, 26 January 2174
I woke up to a strange chill. My cheeks felt numb
from lying on a cold hard oor. I was wearing a blue suit
this time. This one was not made of the same fabric and
seemed to be more worn around the edges. The room
I was in was a broader version of my earlier cell. I also
spotted a UV pot tted in one corner and as I looked
around, I realized that was not the only difference.
There was no missing wall here, no break, just a
seamless expanse of four walls binding me in. This
looked and felt like one of those solitary connement
rooms in prisons shown in the retro lms. Only here all
the walls were cold, hard and metallic.
196 INFINITUDE
I gave up on investigating any further because an
overwhelming feeling of despair swept over me. I felt
like banging my head against the oor and crushing
my skull in. But of course, I did no such thing. I just
lay there feeling listless, lost and completely hopeless.
The wait was endless. At one point in the day or night,
a food plate arrived through a chute ap that blended
right back into the walls as soon as I picked up my plate.
I swallowed down the familiar globules of multi-
coloured porridge which was as bland and inadequate
as ever. Hours passed or maybe just minutes, I had no
way of telling. I only got up to use the pot and once I
was done, I lay down on the oor, spreading my arms
and legs. It seemed surreal that my body, my life could
have changed so drastically in such a few days. My
muscles ached, my head hurt and the throb in my ankle
had become a part of my existence. A voice startled
me out of my brooding.
Its a bit early for a nap, is it not . . . Mira Sharma?
I raised myself up on my feet unsteadily and turned
around for thats where the voice came from. Shaved
scalp, broad forehead, sunken, piercing eyes and a
spotless square chin, Lek was not dressed in his heavy
armour today. He was wearing a black bodysuit just
like the prison guards. He seemed to have materialized
from nowhere, or maybe the doors were just like the
food chutes, cleverly concealed in the metal walls.
Standing with his hands folded behind his back,
he looked at me with a bored expression on his face.
Dreaming of wild escapades, perhaps? he asked
with a sigh, as if talking to me was exhausting him.
His jaded demeanour could have fooled me, if his
eyes hadnt felt so familiar and were not so easily
decipherable. They were the same mixed-up colour as
Neels and yet they were so very different. Arctic and
emotionless, they had a tell-tale glint in them. A keen
sharpness which deed the indifferent behaviour he
put on. This small knowledge gave me the condence
I needed to confront him. This Eron was the man who
had waged war against my whole race.
Maybe, I answered him with a smirk, You seem
to be in serious need of entertainment.
My bravado was reckless, idiotic even, but what
was there left to lose? What could they do to me,
now? Torture and beat me like they did to Mita?
Whatever the consequences, it felt like if I could
show him down for even a second, all my pain would
be completely worth it. Maybe this little deance
would lend some meaning to the lives of all my friends
which he had destroyed so easily and with such
horrible brutality.
His eyes ashed but then he smiled, baring his
teeth. It made his face look grotesque and the effect
was chilling. Your mother could also do with some of
that . . . entertainment.
His words made me suck in a breath and I had to
stop myself from lunging at him. Where is she? I asked
through gritted teeth.
He smiled. The question you should be asking is
how is she?
Dread lled me but I didnt let it show on my face.
People like Lek fed off others fears and doubts. I
treaded with care. Her research . . . you kept our whole
sector alive because of my Moms research?
He looked at me with his piercing eyes, Sometimes
it surprises me that you quarrelsome, frivolous bunch
THE RIDE 197
198 INFINITUDE
of humoz are capable of such intelligence and such
courage.
I started at his use of the term.
He smirked and said, You look surprised at the
name. I think it is only fair. Your kind gave us a name,
Erons and we gave you one ourselves. Humoz is much
better suited than the lofty human isnt it?
He sighed deeply and started walking around the
room, keeping his eyes xed on me.
Well, I had to sustain all of those humoz. I kept them
in sectors. Till we had nished all our psychological and
physical experiments. Till we had gleaned all that was
there in your tiny little brains. Your sector was the last
one. All those humoz had to be maintained, living on
our resources, eating off our food. All for your mother.
You see, sometimes the spark of genius doesnt come
from having a superior IQ. Sometimes it is just inherent
and genetically coded. Thankfully, Mr Jain thought of
bringing her to the rainforest.
Our sector . . .?
. . . has been purged, he completed impassively. I
struggled to keep a calm face because his eyes were
still watching, waiting to catch my reaction.
I pressed my lips together. You still need my Mom
though. You wouldnt pass up a chance on immortality,
would you?
He nodded. Unfortunate but true. However the
good news is that now, we have you, he said, baring
his teeth again in a mocking smile. When you went
missing, your Mom dropped all her work thinking you
had gone Haris way. I winced at Haris name and Lek
didnt miss the reaction.
Oh yes, I know everything. Hari uncovered some
THE RIDE 199
things he shouldnt have at the institute. Mr Jain had
security keep an eye on him, but he made use of those
little treks with you in the jungle. He made a run for it
and I am told he has not been found yet . . . probably
already been snacked upon by the mutant new breeds.
But Neel told me . . . His spine stiffened as I uttered
Neels name and he gave me a glare.
Yes, he was probably trying to protect your feeble
mind. He stared right through me and focused on
something far away. That boy was always too soft on
you humoz but to actually fall for one of them . . . his
eyes panned back to my face, focused on my body,
looking at it in a way that made me feel uncomfortable,
. . . ludicrous.
I tried hard not to let him get to me but the look he
threw my way made me cringe. So thats what they
thought of us? Then why did Neel, like his father had
put it, fall for me?
Maybe it was because of the surveillance, he said,
answering my unspoken question. I waited but when
he didnt elaborate, I was forced to ask, Surveillance?
He smirked at me, He didnt tell you?
When I didnt reply, he shook his head and answered,
Yes, he and his little team were helping Mr Jain by
keeping an eye on your mothers research. I think Neel
got a little carried away while observing you and your
mother. He got involved in your lives after he saw you
every day and watched your every move.
Neel had been spying on me and my Mom? My
every move! He made it sound so callous, so intrusive
and maybe thats just what it was. A bored young
boys naive obsession with a girl from another race,
whose face he had grown used to seeing on a screen.
200 INFINITUDE
Insecurity started to leech away at the fire in my
heart. Whatever mind games Lek was playing were
succeeding in achieving their end.
Anyway, he carried on, we have you now. And it
will be a great motivation for your mother to nally put
her head into nishing her research. You will be very
comfortable here I assure you. We dont bother with
unnecessary cruelty. Youll be assigned your quarters
and youll stay there as long as we wish. Oh! And dont
even think about escaping. In case you havent gured
out already, youre in the middle of an ocean.
Where are we? What is this place? I asked,
remembering the intimidating structure I had seen in
the sea before being trapped.
You are the second humoz to have the privilege of
living on Aquapolis I, the rst of the aquatic cities to
be ever built, he said with a proud smile. Designed
to resist extreme weather conditions, self-sustaining
and with a capacity for 1 million inhabitants . . . it is a
marvel of modern science. Sometimes, I cant believe
that 60 of them are now out there on our planet. His
eyes had that faraway look again and he went quiet,
thinking of things that were probably very far removed
from my immediate concerns.
Where is my Mom?
His eyes came back to me with a start and his face
hardened. Very much here, I promise you, but the less
entertaining you make yourself, the safer she will be.
He turned to leave and the outline of a door emerged
as he stepped closer to it. I tried to capture its position
in the room, so I could remember it for later. As he was
leaving, he turned and caught my stare.
He shook his head and muttered, It is useless, Mira
THE RIDE 201
Sharma. Theres no escaping this place and soon there
will be nowhere else to go to.
What do you mean? My question was barely a
whisper.
He left, melting into the walls that closed in after him.
I ran towards them, feeling their smoothness with my
ngers. Theyd blended back in place without as much
as a crease! I scanned the walls meticulously trying to
nd a ssure or an opening of some sort but there was
no chink anywhere. I turned back disappointed and
slumped down on the oor.
I was back to guessing time for hours, days, months.
How did one make out time when the walls caved you in,
suspended your breaths in echoes ricocheting through
your brain, eyeballs bleaching with a uorescence that
seemed to be draining your very existence?
Meals and showers marked the only breaks
in continuity. Plates appeared in the chute and
disappeared as I woke up from the drug-induced haze.
The cleansing shower sprays would sporadically appear
from the roof and leave my skin feeling raw and tender.
The frequency of these breaks became too crowded,
too similar to keep track. I ran my ngers through my
hair to stop it from matting, cleaned my mouth with
the two mint leaves they generously gave along with
the food and kept my bowels functional using the pot
in the corner. I did everything it took to hang on to
hope. I ceased to worry about Mom, her research, and
how long it would sustain us. I ceased to worry about
anything. But still the quantum of time was endless and
increasingly I spent it slumped in a corner with my eyes
shut, waiting for my end.
Myrah?
202 INFINITUDE
Myrah? the voice asked again. I refused to
acknowledge it. Responding would mean crossing that
barrier. The one that held my sanity in check.
Something touched my shoulder and I cringed from
the contact. Not a hallucination then. Rubbing away
the bleariness, I managed to crack my eyes open but
the uorescent lights blinded me. Then a face lled my
vision, sheltering me from their harshness. My heart
sped up and my breath became all knotted.
Myrah, he said again and held my face in his hands.
His eyes looked pained and right at that moment it didnt
matter if he was an Eron, if he really loved me, or even
if he was here to kill me. Right then all that mattered
was the suffering that I saw in his eyes. That suffering
which I thought had belonged only to me. I clasped him
tight to myself and we stayed like that for a long time.
You need to come with me, Myrah, he nally
whispered in my hair.
So he had come as my end. Maybe the agony on
his face came from the discomfort of his role. Not a
resonance of my feelings.
The betrayal stabbed me deep. How many times
would I set myself up for this?
I pulled back and looked at him. He was unchanged.
Those eyes. That nose. His lips. Just as gloriously
heartbreaking as ever. When he held out his hand,
I noticed his ngers had completely healed. The
only marks left on them were faint, darkened welts.
The Erons must have some fantastic super drugs at
their disposal.
We stepped out of the room and entered a long
corridor. Endless translucent walls stretched around me
on both sides, seamless in their deceptive uniformity.
THE RIDE 203
Who knew how many stories like mine lay trapped
behind them?
We stopped before a section of the wall and as Neel
stepped closer, the outline of a door appeared on it.
Stepping inside, I found the room to be in complete
contrast to the previous one. Filled with strange looking
equipment, its centre was occupied by a group of
white metallic machines crowding around an elevated,
oodlit berth. It reminded me of scary futuristic movies
involving aliens and cruel experiments. My skin began
to crawl and my teeth started chattering. An arm held
me across my shoulders and pressed me against an
unyielding chest. I turned my face and burrowed into
the safety it offered me. Even through the thick layer
of his suit, I could feel the frantic beat inside his chest.
Maybe, just maybe, he still cared? Maybe it was just
what I needed to believe. Sometimes all one could do
was to believe in the lie and hope it turned true someday.
His lips moved against my hair. Its all going to be
okay. I promise. His words weakened my knees and
I slumped. He lifted me in his arms and carried me
towards the berth.
Just as I tried to submit myself to my fate, a masked
person entered the room. Shivers wracked my body as
I lay down on the berth. Its too soon. I had to say so
many things. Why didnt Neel take me away? I could
die a thousand deaths for him . . . but him? Hed just
watch as someone mufed the life out of me?
The person approached me with a med patch in
his hand and I wondered if everyone could hear the
frantic thudding of my heart. Then I felt it. The med
patch touching my skin. My body stilled and I closed
my eyes with a dreadful nality. A soft nudge on my
204 INFINITUDE
shoulder had me opening my eyes again. The masked
person was staring at me. My vision started to blur but
I could make out the person snagging a nger on his
mask and pulling it down.
Firdaus. Its Firdaus. His face started to fade as
he put his mask back on and picked up a scalpel. A
scalpel? Then he did something completely unexpected
and absurd. He winked at me.
What? I started to say but my tongue refused to
cooperate. It lay heavy and immobile in my mouth. My
vision started contorting into a dizzying, spiralling set
of tunnels. The only thing piercing the haze was the
sharp glint of the scalpels blade, till I couldnt even
hang onto that anymore.
A horrible burn rose up my throat and lled my
mouth with scalding acid. I was lying on my stomach
so I got up coughing and sputtering, trying to spit out
the sourness. I was still in the same room, still on the
berth, still alive. And I was not alone. I looked back
and found Neel standing on the other side of the berth,
looking down at me. Brow crinkled with concern, his
hand was resting on the berth, stretched out towards
mine. I stepped down from the berth and faced him.
Why am I still alive? The hoarseness of my voice
made it unrecognisable even to me own ears.
He sucked in a breath and his face scrunched as if
in pain. Thats what you think? he said. When I didnt
respond he straightened his back, wiping his face clean
of all emotions.
Feel the chip in your nose, he said in a clipped tone.
Curious, I raised my hand to my nose and found that
the lump there was gone. I looked up at him in surprise.
What? Where did it go? Thats when I realized.
THE RIDE 205
He had brought me here not to kill me but to remove
the trackers from my body. I felt the base of my spine
through the thin fabric of the jumpsuit. No sign of the
bump there too.
You can thank Firdaus later, Neel told me, his face
still expressionless. As we speak, he is doing the same
for your mother, then Mita, Jaggi, Kamal and Deepak.
All of them are here on the polis. Once the trackers
are removed, we will make a craft available for all of
you. Using the location well feed into the craft, you
can travel to a place where there are other surviving
human factions.
My eyes widened. Maybe I had this all wrong. Maybe
what we had was real. Why else would he do all this?
Why are you doing this? I asked.
He remained silent and I stepped closer to him.
Why? I asked him again. He crossed his arms over
his chest but it didnt deter me. I stepped closer till I
was standing right in front of him.
He looked down at me and his mask slipped. His
face twisted with grief. Dont you know? he asked in
a broken voice.
I do know. My heart throbbed with joy. I reached for
his hands, unlocking them from around his chest. He let
me. Lacing my ngers through his, I wrapped his arms
around me. Then with our clasped hands digging into
my back, I planted my face in his chest and breathed
in. We stood like that for a long time. Lost in each other.
Lost in our familiar togetherness.
Youre coming with us? I asked even though I
already knew the answer.
Myrah. His voice was gentle as he rubbed his chin
against my head.
206 INFINITUDE
Please. I put all my heart, all my want in that one word.
His arms tightened around me in response and I
wished I could freeze this moment forever.
Neel! a voice screamed from outside and we
stepped away from each other. A harried looking Anil
ran into the room.
They traced down the surveillance hack. We have
half an hour before they boot them up again.
Get Firdaus and the other humoz, Neel said and
swung into action. Grabbing my hand, he hauled me up
against him. I staggered along and tried to keep up with
his pace but then Neel suddenly stopped, picked me
up in his arms and started running down the corridor
at break-neck speed. After what Id just been through,
the momentum was nauseating.
What . . . about my . . . Mom and . . . the others? I
asked, my voice breaking in rhythm to his strides.
Firdaus and Anil are getting them.
I thought of the directions he had given to Anil.
Humoz, he had called them. Thats what his father had
called us. He was doing all this . . . going against his
own father. For me?
I felt him come to an abrupt halt and then a second
later, he dropped me to my feet. We were standing in
a wide hall and facing us was the strangest looking
machine I had ever seen. It was shaped like a tall
metallic tower resting on thin spidery legs. As we
approached it, a hatch opened up on one side and I
climbed in with trepidation.
Once inside, I discovered its interiors were very
different from a xeppels. Loaded with a complex set
of buttons and levers, it also had strange-looking pods
embedded into the walls. I turned to see Neel tapping
THE RIDE 207
some information into a hologram. It looked like a
complicated chart or maybe a map of some sort.
After he flicked it off, he turned to me. Ive
programmed it to reach the destination. Its on auto
mode so none of you will have to worry.
What will happen to you after we leave?
Nothing.
Nothing?
I have to be here. His face was expressionless and
I knew. Nothing I would say could make him change
his mind. But I still tried.
Your father will never forgive you.
This is much more than that. He has to be stopped
and I know how.
Stopped?
From destroying the planet.
I sucked in a breath. What do you mean?!
He plans to release toxic gases across each of the
land masses. He wants to smoke out the remaining
humo . . . humans.
Smoke them out?
He thinks he doesnt need the land masses anymore.
The many Aquapolis around the world are all self-
sustaining. Any minerals, metals they need to replenish
come from the ocean oors. Already all the Aquapolis
have been primed to stay away from shores . . . yes
they can move as well.
But the gas wont be selective . . . it will kill
everything!
Just collateral damage. It doesnt seep into the water
and thats all that matters to him.
My mind boggled at imagining such a scenario.
All the land masses converted into barren wastelands
208 INFINITUDE
overnight! Trees, animals, humans. Species that took
billions of years to form and link up, all eradicated with
one single step. I lean against the wall for support even
as Neel continued, I have to stay back. I have to stop
him. His voice was stiff but when he lifted his head,
the hollowness on his face wrung my heart out.
I walked up to him and knelt down so we were face
to face. Eyes closed, I touched my forehead to his.
My hands found his shoulders, trailed up the sides of
his neck and held the back of his head. I memorized
everything. The curve of his collarbones, the rmness
of his shoulders, the softness of the skin behind his ear
lobes, the faint trace of hair trailing his nape.
When he wrapped his arms around me it felt like I
had travelled back in time. A forgotten pulse started
beating again in my heart. Then our lips touched and
the beat ignited. My hands pressed him closer, trying to
remove even the smallest measure of distance between
us. Our lips met with a gut-wrenching tenderness. Then
he abruptly removed his arms and it was like someone
had punched me in the stomach. My ngers dragged
themselves down his skin, unwilling to relinquish the
contact. Unwilling to let go. But it was time.
I watched him disappear through the hatch and
squeezed my eyes shut wanting to remember this
moment because even though we had said our goodbyes,
I knew deep down that what we had was unchanged,
untarred and had marked me forever. Falling in love
with him had ruined me for life.
Mira! I opened my eyes and saw Mom rushing
towards me. She wrapped me in her arms and we held
each other rocking and sobbing till another body hit
us both. I lifted my eyes to see Mitas spiked red head
THE RIDE 209
buried in my mothers back. More people lled up the
small space inside the craft and the three of us broke
up to watch them. Firdaus brought in an unconscious
Deepak and belted him in a pod. Anil brought in Kamal
and did the same. Before leaving, Firdaus stopped
to give me a chin raise and then he was gone. Neel
walked in again carrying Jaggi over his shoulder.
My heart ipped painfully in my chest. This was
the last time I was going to see him. I steeled myself
for what was to come. The last look, the last touch.
But then it all happened in less than a second. Neel
put Jaggi into the pod and just as he was about to belt
him in, Jaggi smacked Neels head down on his knee.
A crunch and a second later Neel crumpled on the
oor. Both Mom and I rushed to Neels help. Ignoring
us, Jaggi hopped across to the control panel. I looked
down at Neel, his head lying limp on my lap. Mom tore
a strip from her shirt and pushed it down on the gush
of blood owing from his forehead.
Mita! The hatch, I heard Jaggi shout. I looked up to
see Mita rushing to close the hatch. As the craft came
to life, I heard shouts coming from outside. Worried, I
looked at Jaggi who seemed quite comfortable in front
of the control panel. He had a hologram open and as
he icked an icon on it, the craft started rising in the
air. I watched in dread as we neared the roof of the hall
but as soon as we approached it the roof disappeared.
And just like that we were off, shooting up in the sky.
Neel was still unconscious but at least the blood had
stopped owing. After a few minutes, as his breathing
steadied and his wound clotted, I started worrying
about how he would react when he came around.
And what would he do now? What about his father?!
210 INFINITUDE
The turn of events was too sudden, too drastic for me
contemplate.
Where are we going? I heard Mita asking Jaggi
who was busy studying a navigational chart. From this
distance, it looked like the one Neel had been feeding
our destination into.
Camp Riese, he replied.
What? Both Mita and I shouted at the same time.
Jaggi looks at Mita and then glanced back at me.
His eyes shifted to Neels head resting in my lap.
Ill be damned, Mita muttered and I wondered about
this place that had her so freaked. Jaggi didnt say
anything but just turned back to the panel and shrugged.
After a few minutes as Mom explored the cabinets
for some edibles, I saw Mita observing something
intently out of the window. I followed her gaze and my
breath caught at the view outside.
The sky wasnt blue anymore, it was pitch black
and shining across as far as my eyes could see, were
tiny crystalline sparkles. I squeezed my eyes shut and
thanked the fates for the way things turned out. When
I opened them again, I found Mita looking at me and
even after all that we had been through, we looked at
each other and smiled. Tell me about Camp Riese? I
asked her and she started talking.
It seems Camp Riese was actually an old bunker
complex. It was in the same continent as the Eiffel
Tower and had played a big role in a war. A war that
had happened centuries ago.
Mita told me it was called the Second World War
and that the camp had been used by the bad guys to
store their weapons. These bad guys had thought of
themselves as superior to the others and had enslaved
THE RIDE 211
many of the other races to prove their dominance. It all
seemed rather familiar to me. The only difference was
in our case, the camp which had harboured evil earlier
was now going to be put to good use.
I remembered Neel mentioning earlier that there
were other surviving human factions there. I told Mita
about that. She told me a lot more about this war and
how it had panned out. It was all very fascinating. I
asked her how she knew about all this and she told me
her father had gotten to know about this camp from
a nomad theyd met while living in the jungle. Long
after Mita nished, I rested my head against the wall
and gazed at the sky outside. Why did everything blur
when you moved on the ground, but remained static
when ying in air? Maybe because on ground we had
fears and hesitations muddling our vision. The constant
looking over the shoulder, the perpetual dread of the
shadows lurking in the bushes, or just the unending
comparisons against other people who marked our lives
and changed our destiny forever.
I looked at the myriad twinkling stars stuck on the
sky like ancient jewels. I watched them with wonder
and swelling relief. Up here, so far away from the muck
down below, it almost felt like I was invincible. Here,
where there was nothing holding me back, no one
pulling me down, it almost felt like I could shape my
own destiny. And maybe I would.
EPI LOGUE
Stinger dated 09/2193: Bioscience personnel are
advised that Senior Mentor Neel, Mentor Suri and
Senior Servicer Froi are scheduled for Renege today
at 34:00 galaxy time.

My mind is conscious. The dose has worn off but
strangely, I dont feel disoriented at all. Maybe its
because I know what to expect. I had come in this room
an hour ago, feeling dragged down by the perpetual
weight sitting on my chest. My whole body had felt
stiff. Weary. Old.
I know what it will feel like when I get up now.
Adrenalin coursing through my veins, crackling my
new bones, renewing my decaying muscles, charging
up every bre, every cell in my supplanted body. The
only thing thatll remain the same will be my thoughts
and a part of my memory. Because that is the one
drawback of the Renege retrograde amnesia.
I lost about thirty per cent of my memories when I
underwent my very rst procedure. That was when I
had turned 30. At that time, they had instructed me to
undergo the procedure every ten years.
This has been my second Renege.
The craving in my stomach wills me to get up but
when I raise my head, a sudden jolt in my ngertips
stuns me for a second. I look down at my hands in
surprise. This has never happened before. Out of
nowhere an image of shredded ngers ashes through
my mind. Horried, I raise my hands and ip them
around. I stare at my intact, unharmed hands and
realize that my fears are completely unfounded.
I lie back and close my eyes, trying hard to centre
my mind but then an image ashes through my mind
again. This time its nothing gruesome. Its actually a
face. A girls face.
It drifts in and out, just escaping my reach. I squeeze
my eyes tight and try harder to make out its features.
Round black eyes, dusky oval face and raven hair. A
humoz! What was a humoz doing in my dreams? I hear
someone entering the room and I sit up with a start.
Its my attendant. I glare at him but he doesnt seem
to have noticed anything amiss.
He starts telling me all the post-procedure precautions
I need to take, but I already know them all by heart. I
switch my mind off and think about the next few days.
As per the post-procedure rules, everyone gets a week
off after theyve undergone the Renege, but with the
upcoming selection for the council, taking leave now
might not be the best move for me.
I cant share any of these worries with my attendant
so when he bows, I just nod my head and leave for
my room.
I lie down looking forward to a restful sleep but the
strange ashes intensify over the night. The dreams are
unsettling. They are much too vivid. There is too much
emotion. Nothing of this nature has ever been reported
post procedure! Myrah. The name suddenly surfaces on
my tongue and I put my hand over my mouth, surprised
EPILOGUE 213
214 INFINITUDE
at having uttered it out loud. I tear open my eyes and
even my breathing. Even the impulsiveness of the act
is completely out of character for me. Too spontaneous.
Too out of balance. Not something a senior would do.
Dawn breaks but I dont step out of my room. My
brain is much too muddled for any coherent thought
or action.
Why are these memories coming back to me now?
They were supposed to be deleted from my brain
forever. After all its a well-known, well-studied side
effect of Renege. Then why now? Had something gone
wrong in the procedure this time? I ex my hands and
feet. They seem t and springy like they always do
post Renege.
I go out for a walk, eat the food slotted for me, but
then nally decide on taking a few days off. I need
time to process this.
And thats what I do over the next few days. At night,
as the images continue to haunt me, I start linking up
the ashes. The girls face becomes clearer, bringing
other memories along with it. Memories that were
buried in a young, fresh heart.
The ache in my chest the rst time I saw her, the thrill
when my lips touched hers, the fury of seeing her being
held by the guards, of nding her broken and forlorn
in one of the watch rooms. The last helpless words she
shared with me with my head in her lap, right before
the other humans started torturing me for information.
Theyd been trying to find out about our plans. I
remember the look of betrayal on her face when Id
told her that years ago my father had secluded batches
of humans for his own experiments. Hed put them in
sectors and studied their knowledge, habits, building
EPILOGUE 215
the basis for our own people. I remembered how my
father had then managed to track my whereabouts
and had destroyed most of the underground camp. I
remembered the most painful thing. That instead of
coming with me, despite all the things I had done for
her, the girl had decided to stay back with that other
humoz boy, Jaggi.
Myrah. That was my name for her.
I try to push the memories away. To be remembering
these moments now means that they must be deeply
ingrained in my brain. But how could I have possibly
felt any connection with that girl? It seems so frivolous,
so trivial. And all for an unsightly humoz? Absurd.
Soni visits me on the fourth day. We talk about the
selection due the next day. My scorecard is perfect but
thats not enough according to Soni. She thinks the
only thing that will now differentiate the candidates
is the nal sermon. A sermon that will be watched by
every Eron on this planet and beyond. A sermon that
I had already prepared before my procedure. Before
she leaves, she asks about my well-being. Better than
ever before, I say and its not a lie. Physically, I feel
like a 20-year-old even though my mind is in shambles.
Of course, I dont share any of this with her. A human
love interest being dredged up from my past would be
disastrous at this stage.
Soni seems satised with my reply and after she
leaves, I spend some time going over my sermon. A
lot of it is from my fathers notes. Pity, he couldnt live
to see how our people had ourished. Pity, he couldnt
live till they discovered the procedure. He spent his
life driving our scientists for drugs that could provide
the ever-elusive immortality. How ironic that they
216 INFINITUDE
discovered it just ve years after his death. Five years,
after they replaced his position with an elected council.
And how ironic was it that the Commander-in Chief
of all the Erons, the one who had ensured their racial
supremacy was now just a name on the data machines.
And here I am his son, Neel Singh, having to prove my
worth to be elected to the council.
Father would have been proud of the strategy
my sermon illustrates. I will be advocating for the
aggressive spreading of our system across the Virgo
super-cluster. I have even prepared for the possible
counters that the council can pose to test me.
For example, they may question me about the
investment in these expeditions. Its true that the
expeditions in the last ten years within the local galactic
group have not come up with equivalent returns in
resource mining but still, I will press upon the need
for an increase in the intensity and hostility of our
search efforts. The chief reason being that our current
resources garnered from across the local galactic group
are not only unsustainable but are of inferior quality.
They may then argue that even though the ocean
bases have been utilized, the potential of the land
masses, both here and on Earth have remained
untapped for decades. But then Ill point out that
whatever minerals are left in the land masses across
both the planets are either contaminated by the
extermination efforts, or have already been staked
upon by the mutants. Especially on Earth. They are
just too many of them now, multiplying every minute
and becoming an uncontrollable menace.
It might as well make sense to undertake a second
more extreme extermination exercise to get rid of them.
EPILOGUE 217
The next day I wake up to a charged air. The alleys
outside are buzzing with excitement. The selection
happens only once in ten years and is an eagerly
anticipated public event.
Inside the public space, I take my place in the sphere
of seniors. Along with me are the other two candidates.
The council sits behind us and all of us face our audience.
I am the third speaker but I patiently wait for my
turn. I am in no hurry. The conviction I have keeps my
back straight and my chin high. I wonder if this is how
everyone feels when theyre sure of their victory. Can
they sense every bre of their being lit up? Do they
see each and every face in the audience? Each and
every detail? Do their toes and ngers arch to touch
that exultant high? And then I see her.
It is the face from my dreams. The humoz girl! But
this is impossible. How could she have ever survived?
Her hair has been shaved off so she looks like us, but
there is no mistaking those eyes. I could recognize them
anywhere. Black, beautiful and hopelessly human.
She hasnt noticed my attention yet. Her face is
twisted with an ugly humoz emotion as she stares at
someone standing in the front. My eyes shift to the
subject of her wrath. Soni. I hear the rst speakers
heels clacking down to the focal point and I get
distracted for a second. When my eyes shift back to
the audience, I nd the girl has disappeared. Where
did she go? My eyes scan the crowd desperately,
trying to nd her face. The speaker starts talking of
new technologies for improving ocean mining and of
focusing on researching sustainables among the local
galactic. The same old tripe. I tune her out and keep
looking for the girl. But shes gone. Nowhere to be seen.
218 INFINITUDE
Maybe it was just an error. A Renege-fuelled fantasy. I
cant afford to indulge in any fantasies at this moment.
The first speaker finishes to a mild applause. I
banish all the plaguing illusions and try to focus on
the second sermon which turns out to be on the most
differentiated topic ever. The candidate talks about
utilizing and domesticating the mutants on Earth.
To a stunned audience, he elucidates the benets of
optimizing the resources we have on existing planet
groups and then he stresses that it requires involving
the other life forms as well.
He talks about conducting partnerships instead of
exterminations, even as the audience shufes on their
feet, trying to hide their sly smiles. I feel my blood
boiling at his stupidity, his attempts to make a mockery
of the sermon, defending the critters who have forever
attacked us, killing our kind, stealing our resources. I
can barely contain myself as I see him nish and step
down. I dont wait for him to come back. I walk past his
shocked ruddy face and stand there facing my people.
My voice is strong, every timbre, every tenor daring to
be challenged.
One people, one system, one cluster . . .